Political Smokeout

Daugaard to call legislative special session in June (updated)

Gov. Dennis Daugaard will call a special session of the South Dakota Legislature late next month to deal with a $10 million cost overrun in the construction of a new state veterans home in Hot Springs.

Lawmakers had appropriated $41 million in state and federal funds for the project earlier this year — but the lowest bid for the project was “considerable above projections,” Daugaard wrote in a Wednesday letter to legislators announcing the session. The total cost overrun was about 25 percent of the project’s initial budget.

The governor will be asking the Legislature to appropriate $14 to $20 million in surplus money from the current fiscal year to pay the extra veterans home costs instead of letting that money go into reserves.

“Needless to say, I am very disappointed with our architect,” Daugaard wrote to lawmakers. “My priority is to build a durable, quality facility for our veterans – they deserve nothing less. I do not believe that we can cut $10 million from our plans and still build the facility that we need.”

The revised budget for the 2013 fiscal year, which ends June 30, will have about $7 to $10 million in extra revenue and about $7 to $10 million in lower-than-normal expenses, according to new projections.

That’s the second year in a row the state budget has run millions of dollars in surplus, as Daugaard has encouraged legislators to be cautious about predicting new budget growth.

Rep. Bernie Hunhoff, D-Yankton and the Democratic leader in the state House, predicted the extra money would have broad support in both parties.

“I don’t think there’s anything political about it at all,” Hunhoff said. “We need to get this thing built.”

House Majority Leader David Lust, R-Rapid City, agreed.

“I don’t expect any controversy whatsoever,” Lust said. “When this first came through, the project and the funding, it was unanimous. I don’t expect this will change based on the increased costs.”

Hunhoff said the cost overrun was “disappointing” and that lawmakers would be sure to ask questions about where it came from and the source of the money, but predicted “broad support” in the end.

He also said Democrats would be unlikely to try to use the special session to raise other issues aside from the veterans home.

Lust said calling a special session will cost the state around $30,000. Daugaard tried to find ways to resolve the issue without calling a special session, Lust said, but ultimately had to call the Legislature back to Pierre.

The special session will be the second special session of Daugaard’s tenure as governor and the first not to be pre-planned. The Legislature convened in late 2011 to approve new legislative districts, a meeting added to its calendar long in advance.

In his letter, Daugaard predicted the special session would last a single day. He’s working with legislative leaders to pick a specific date in late June for the session.

Daugaard declares ‘Al Neuharth Day’

Gov. Dennis Daugaard just declared Friday to be “Al Neuharth Day” in South Dakota, in honor of the Eureka native and USA Today founder.

Neuharth, 89, died April 19. The University of South Dakota is hosting a public tribute to Neuharth on Friday starting at 10 a.m.

“From Eureka to USD to USA Today, Al Neuharth was a great South Dakotan who revolutionized the media industry,” Daugaard said in a press release.  “Even as he became one of the nation’s top media figures, he never forgot his roots, and was a generous supporter and frequent visitor to Eureka and to the university.”

On a more personal note, in high school a scholarship from Neuharth’s Freedom Forum to attend a week-long journalism seminar in D.C. was instrumental in persuading me to pursue journalism as a career. If it wasn’t for him maybe I’d be an attorney today. You can decide whether or not society is better off for this.

Daugaard appoints Canton businessman, farmer to House seat

Gov. Dennis Daugaard has filled state Rep. Patty Miller’s state House seat with David Anderson, who owns several Canton insurance agencies and also farms in the region.

Anderson’s father, Larry Anderson, served in the state House from 1971 to 1981.

In picking Anderson, Daugaard bypassed two runners-up from the past election — Ann Tornberg, the Democrat who came in third place in the general election, and Kevin Jensen, the conservative who came in third in the GOP primary.

Daugaard said he picked Anderson because of his “business acumen,” “common-sense approach” and community connections.

Daugaard’s Mall trip isn’t about the handshakes

Gov. Dennis Daugaard’s plan to visit the Mall of America and spend an hour meeting shoppers, encouraging them to consider living and working in South Dakota, has drawn some criticism lately.

Some of this is funny:

I can think of no better place to recruit Minnesota workers than a mall where no Minnesotans shop.argusne.ws/YqAWm3

— Fake SD Gov Daugaard (@DennyDogood) May 6, 2013

But others seem to be missing the point. I’ve had people wonder about how much value the state can really get for the travel and its governor’s time by meeting shoppers.

To these critics, I would direct you to the opportune phrase here: “publicity stunt.”

The value South Dakota gets from Daugaard’s hour in Bloomington will have very little to do with any expatriates the governor glad-hands on the first floor of the Mall of America. The point is that by doing this unusual thing, Daugaard will get media attention in the Twin Cities (and possibly beyond). And a 30-second segment on the evening news in Minneapolis will reach tens of thousands of people. (As near as I can calculate, the about 140,000 people watch all stations’ 5 p.m. news combined in the Twin Cities, according to Nielsen ratings, though my math could be off.) Plus on top of that you have print and radio coverage, which all adds up.

How the the cost of a trip to Minneapolis compare to the cost of reaching all those people through advertising? That’s the real comparison.

60 years of legislative resignations

As part of my story this weekend on legislative resignations, the Legislative Research Council provided me with a spreadsheet of every legislator who’s resigned since at least 1957.

You can view that spreadsheet here.

Here’s the breakdown by governor:

My research also dug up a document from the National Conference of State Legislatures, outlining how every single state handles legislative vacancies. To my surprise, South Dakota’s method (the governor appoints whoever he or she wants, with no restrictions) is very rare. I expected it to be the norm, or at least very common, but only Nebraska and Vermont join South Dakota in having this method.

In fact, only 11 states altogether let the governor pick. The other eight gubernatorial appointment states require the governor to pick a lawmaker of the same political party as the prior occupant of the spot, or force the governor to pick from a list of names provided by that person’s party (sometimes even a list one).

A full 25 states have special elections for every single legislative opening. In five states the political party appoints the lawmaker. In Ohio the appointment is made by the legislative caucus of the same house and party as the departed lawmaker. The Tennessee Legislature as a whole appoints new members. And most confusingly to me, in seven states lawmakers are appointed by boards of county commissioners. (Unless in those states legislative districts are synonymous with counties.)

If South Dakota were writing a new constitution, what would be the best provision to insert to handle legislative appointments?

Here’s the full NCSL document:

Rounds facing conservative doubt in Senate bid

Argusleader.com is down right now, so I’m reposting here my Sunday story about the Republican side of the developing 2014 Senate picture.

The basic thrust is expansion on things I’ve hinted at in prior stories: that Mike Rounds isn’t beloved by some conservative activists, who are hoping he faces a primary. Rounds tells me he expects a primary, and defends both his approach and his record against this criticism.

An interesting side-note that I didn’t get a chance to fully flesh out is that Rounds is facing much more skepticism from fiscal conservatives than he is from social conservatives. People I talked to for whom abortion is a primary issue were generally pretty supportive of Rounds, or at least neutral, while activists for whom taxes and spending and the size of government is the primary issue were more critical. (This is an interesting reversal of Gov. Dennis Daugaard’s position, who has taken a hard line on fiscal matters and spent less political capital on social issues — and who drew fire last year for endorsing several fiscally conservative, socially moderate Republican lawmakers. Daugaard and Rounds remain extremely close allies despite this contrast, with Daugaard endorsing Rounds for Senate.)

Here’s the story, after the jump:

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Jarrod Johnson resigns; Daugaard will appoint replacement

In a surprising move, South Dakota’s public lands commissioner will resign a year and a half before the end of his term.

Jarrod Johnson, 42, was elected in 2010 to a four-year term. But instead he’ll leave office in August to spend more time with his children, including his son Clayton, who is about to start high school, and a daughter, Anna, in grade school.

“I’m going home to my family,” said Johnson, a Corson rancher. “It’s time. (Clayton will) be a freshman. I don’t want to miss his high school years, even one moment of them.”

Johnson, first elected to be commissioner of the Office of School and Public Lands in 2006, was prohibited by term limits from running again.

Gov. Dennis Daugaard will appoint a replacement to fill out the remainder of Johnson’s term.

The governor is undecided about whether to appoint a placeholder or someone who will run for a full term in 2014 as an incumbent.

There’s already one declared candidate for lands commissioner in 2014, state Rep. Jim Bolin, R-Canton.

But Bolin is constitutionally ineligible, as a sitting legislator, to be appointed to the job until the end of his term.

Daugaard “knows there’s already one declared candidate on the Republican side, and a couple others that are widely rumored,” gubernatorial adviser Tony Venhuizen said. “It certainly appears that there will be a Republican contest for that nomination. Those will be factors as he decides how to move forward.”

Among the rumored candidates is Johnson’s deputy, Ryan Brunner, who would be eligible to be appointed to the position.

Bolin said he was “surprised” by the news but plans to stay in the race.

“It doesn’t really change my plans at all,” Bolin said.

Johnson said the resignation wasn’t political, and that he didn’t know Bolin and other legislators were ineligible for the appointment.

“It’s just one of those things where it’s time for me to get my butt home,” Johnson said. “There was no intention of any political gamesmanship in that move.”

The commissioner of school and public lands manages more than 750,000 acres of state-owned land, the mineral rights for 5.2 million acres and a trust fund of more than $170 million. Revenue from those three areas gets directed to support education.

Daugaard parodies himself

Gov. Dennis Daugaard, like South Dakota’s congressional delegation, submits a column to newspapers every week. These columns are typically intended for small weekly newspapers, and are often eminently skippable — empty paeans to uncontroversial topics, or gentle critiques of things everyone hates.

I’m glad I didn’t skip over Daugaard’s most recent column, which certainly wasn’t “typical” in any way.

It’s an April Fools Day column, a parody of Daugaard’s own flinty, cost-cutting image.

But — and this is what makes it so odd — it’s very hard to tell it’s a parody. As someone who’s interviewed the governor and his aides on numerous occasions, a good 90 percent or so of the column is totally believable. (For example, see this post.)

Daugaard staff tell me that the governor wrote most of this one himself.

After the jump, give it a read:

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Statements on Johnson’s retirement

First, Johnson’s own statement:

Today we are in our hometown, to close a circle that began 36 years ago when the people of Clay and Union Counties opened their hearts and homes to us when I ran for the state legislature. I am honored and humbled that you and the people of South Dakota—Democrats, Republicans and Independents—have allowed me to represent you in the state legislature, the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate. You have supported me in multiple elections, and, more importantly, your patience and prayers enabled me to recover from a life -threatening brain injury.

I will be 68 years-old at the end of this term and it is time for me to say good-bye. I will not be running for re-election to the United State Senate in 2014 or any other office. I look forward to serving the remaining two years as the country is facing difficult times on many fronts and I will work every day to find a bipartisan solution to these challenges.

Barb and I want to thank all of the members of Team Johnson who work long hours, every day, to make government responsive to the needs of our citizens and to develop policies that serve South Dakota and America. You are extraordinary and always will be members of our family.

The Bible says that there is a time for every season under heaven. It is now our season to spend more time with our six grandchildren and in the state we love.

God Bless South Dakota. God Bless America. 

President Barack Obama:

For more than three decades, Tim Johnson has dedicated himself to improving the lives of South Dakota’s working families. From his early days in the state legislature to his distinguished career in the Senate, Tim has worked tirelessly to protect our environment, empower rural and Native American communities, and build a financial system that is better able to serve the American people. Always a fighter, Tim’s return to the Senate floor after a life-threatening brain injury was a powerful moment and his recovery continues to inspire us all. I look forward to working with Senator Johnson as he finishes his third term, and Michelle and I join the people of South Dakota in wishing Tim, Barbara, and their entire family all the best. 

2014 Senate candidate Mike Rounds:

I thank Tim for his many years of public service to our state and I wish him and Barb the very best. Although we’ve disagreed on policy over the years, I’ve always respected Tim for his hard work on behalf of South Dakota.

Gov. Dennis Daugaard:

Through eight years in the state Legislature, 10 years in the U.S. House, and 18 years in the U.S. Senate, Tim Johnson has always worked hard for our state. I congratulate Senator Johnson and wish him and Barb well in retirement.

South Dakota Democratic Party chair Ben Nesselhuf:

Senator Tim Johnson always shied away from the limelight, keeping his head down and working hard for South Dakota. Whether he was fighting for family farms, rural water systems, or renewable energy and economic development, Johnson delivered without pomp, and that’s why South Dakotans trusted him for so many years to do the people’s work in Washington. He’ll long be remembered for the huge impact he made on every one of us here in South Dakota.

Legislature upholds all three Daugaard vetoes

The South Dakota Legislature upheld all three of Gov. Dennis Daugaard’s vetoes on Monday, the final day of the state’s legislative session.

Two of the decisions were noncontroversial — a pair of 65-1 House votes to accept Daugaard’s technical changes on spending bills.

The third was close. The Senate voted 22-13 in favor of a bill raising the fertilizer inspection fee to fund fertilizer research — two votes below the 24 needed to override the veto.

Supporters said it was important to fund South Dakota-specific fertilizer research rather than relying on the fertilizer industry. They also pointed to support from ag groups for raising the fertilizer fee.

State Sen. Shantel Krebs, R-Renner, said research by national or out-of-state groups isn’t what South Dakota needs.

“We have very different soil here in South Dakota and we need to have the research done in our universities to provide… our growers the non-biased information they need,” Krebs said.

But other senators sided with Daugaard, arguing the bill was a tax increase and represented government overreach into things that should be done by private interests.

“Why do we want government to step into the area where outside industry is already doing the job?” said Sen. Bill Van Gerpen, R-Tyndall. “I believe the research is going to continue whether we vote this up or down.”

When the Senate passed the fertilizer bill earlier in the legislative session, it sailed through 30-5. Eight senators who previously voted yes switched to no after Daugaard’s veto.

Considering the three vetoes was the final action for the 2013 legislative session before adjournment.