Bluestem Prairie

Rushmore State's culture warriors have fantods over SDSU student club sponsored drag show

South Dakota's performative culture warriors had the fantods at Thursday's South Dakota State University Board of Regents meeting. The object of their fury?  A November 16 drag show at the campus in Brookings, sponsored by the Gender & Sexualities Alliance.

And one state senator promises action!

At the Argus Leader, Morgan Matzen reports in Senator signals she will propose to ban drag shows in South Dakota next year:

A state senator in South Dakota signaled Thursday during a Board of Regents meeting that she is going to draft a bill to attempt to outlaw drag shows after a student organization hosted one at South Dakota State University last month. . . .

Republican Sen. Julie Frye-Mueller and multiple other people spoke during the Board of Regents meeting Thursday in Rapid City to express negative views of the event at SDSU. Frye-Mueller announced she would be bringing a bill in the next legislative session targeted at drag shows.

No bill has been drafted or filed yet, and it's unclear from her announcement at the public meeting exactly from what locations she planned to propose drag shows be outlawed, whether it's possible a college campus or elsewhere. . . .

Read the intricacies of the outrage at the Argus Leader. Bluestem agrees with the opinion at the article's close:

Libby Skarin, campaigns director for the ACLU of South Dakota, tweeted Thursday that the government can’t ban forms on-campus or public speech like drag shows.

“The First Amendment applies to drag shows, period,” Skarin tweeted. “State legislators need to stop wasting everyone’s time with blatantly unconstitutional bills.”

At the South Dakota Searchlight, Seth Tupper reports in Critics berate regents about drag show, and senator pledges to bring legislation:

After the leader of the state’s university system announced “process improvements” in response to controversy about a recent drag show, critics denounced the handling of the show and a state senator pledged legislation to address it.

The show took place Nov. 16 at South Dakota State University in Brookings. Some commenters on social media praised the show, while others criticized the university for allowing it and criticized advertising that described the show as “kid friendly.”

Brian Maher, executive director of the Board of Regents, addressed the controversy Thursday during a board meeting at South Dakota Mines in Rapid City. He said his comments were meant to address “numerous calls and many conversations.”

“The first point to make is that we follow state law and we do not – cannot – discriminate against student organizations based on the content or viewpoint of their expressive activity,” Maher said. “Access to and use of facilities on our campuses is equally available to all.”

Maher acknowledged “miscommunication and angst around how this event was marketed.” It should be clear when an event is sponsored by a student organization rather than the university itself, he said. The drag show was sponsored by the student-run Gender & Sexualities Alliance.

“New protocol will make it clear when an event is being put on by a student organization in accordance with state law,” Maher said, “and when an event is being sponsored and put on by the university. That is a significant distinction that didn’t happen during this event.”

Later, during the public comment portion of Thursday’s meeting, numerous speakers criticized the drag show, drawing applause from a crowd of dozens behind them. Some pressed the board to support policy or law changes that would disallow future drag shows on university campuses.

One of the speakers, state Sen. Julie Frye-Mueller, R-Rapid City, said “we do have plans to bring some bills before the Legislature this year to address this kind of thing.”

“This is absolutely sick, especially when families bring children,” Frye-Mueller said.

No one associated with the drag show or SDSU addressed the board about the show. Board President Pam Roberts eventually ended the public comment period, and the board moved on to other agenda items without any discussion or action on the drag show.

For a look at genuine higher education issues facing the South Dakota legislature, Bluestem recommends checking out Matzen's Friday article, Noem's proposed budget includes free college for National Guard, but no tuition freeze. 

Perhaps the South Dakota legislature should turn its attention to reconciling the differences in Noem's and the BOR's budget requests.

Photo: State legislators think show is not appropriate for an on-campus event, but performer Devondra Shakers explains that dress code, music, interactions are all kid-friendly, as advertised.  Provided to MSN as SDSU drag show organizers and performers explain their “kid-friendly” show by Sioux Falls (Mitchell) KSFY.

The South Dakota Searchlight article is republished online under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. 

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SD News Watch: SD cities innovate to help the homeless with new focus on indigenous needs

Homelessness seems particularly cruel as South Dakota's winter deepens.

A look into street outreach programs in Rapid City and Sioux Falls from South Dakota News Watch.

South Dakota cities innovate to help the homeless with new focus on Native American needs
By Stu Whitney

A new frontier in South Dakota’s fight against homelessness involves using “street outreach teams” to identify and interact with vulnerable individuals in the community and get them the help they need, taking some of that responsibility away from law enforcement.

The effort is an acknowledgment among public officials in Rapid City and Sioux Falls that the origins of homelessness and drug addiction are complex and often melded with mental health issues, and that getting to the root of the problem could have more lasting impact than merely providing meals or temporary shelter.

The street outreach strategy – the top recommendation of a Sioux Falls Homeless Task Force formed in the summer of 2022 – also addresses the reality that Native Americans make up a disproportionate number of the South Dakota homeless population, creating cultural and language barriers in some cases that prevent meaningful intervention, especially when police are first on the scene.

“Law enforcement can be well-equipped and well-trained, but a lot of times for the individuals that we’re dealing with, it’s going to start off with a position of animosity because they view (police officers) as not necessarily the one they want to hear that message from,” said Sioux Falls Police Chief Jon Thum, who has worked with the task force to seek solutions. “Someone who comes from a different background or perspective and has time to build relationships can maybe be the one who steers them toward positive change.”

The latest point-in-time homeless count by the South Dakota Housing for the Homeless Consortium – conducted on Jan. 25, 2022 – put the number of homeless individuals in the state at 1,389, up nearly 50% from five years ago (955 in 2017). The Rapid City count was 458 (up 53% from 2017) and Sioux Falls was 407 (up 26%). These numbers are generally considered “undercounts” because of the challenges of finding and identifying people without residence, especially in the middle of winter.

Native Americans, who make up 8.8% of the overall state population, comprised nearly 70% of the 2022 state homeless count, including 76% in Rapid City. Sioux Falls, where the homeless population is 36% Indigenous, according to the count, has used Rapid City and other communities as a model for “co-response” efforts to get at the root of people’s struggles and funnel them to available services when they’re ready.

The Sioux Falls task force has recommended a two-year pilot program for a street outreach team to provide “trauma-informed practices” and “peer support strategies” in coordination with city and county officials and the Sioux Falls Police Department, with an estimated price tag of $500,000 over two years. The proposal comes after increased complaints about panhandling at interstate exit ramps and a greater focus on indigent individuals downtown due to recent development.

“It’s no longer ‘out of sight, out of mind,’” said Rich Merkouris, a first-term city councilor who chaired the task force. “Based on what the committee has seen, we’re still in a position where we’re not overwhelmed to the point of starting to eat away at the core of the community, but people are concerned. After seeing what was being done in other cities, we wondered about trying to engage with these individuals in a different way rather than just have law enforcement called after things became problematic.”

Thum, who became police chief in the summer of 2021, said people can’t be arrested for holding up signs asking for money. It becomes more problematic when they do so on private property or step into traffic to solicit or receive cash from motorists.

Generally, though, he sees panhandling and public nuisance calls as symptoms of problems that can be addressed with boots-on-the-ground intervention by people with lived experience on the streets or training in social work and cultural outreach.

“It’s easy to look at a lot of problems in society and paint it with a broad brush, but what’s our best chance to make inroads?” Thum said. “People who are more culturally aware of different nuances, and don’t carry the same historical baggage that law enforcement carries to these encounters, might have a better chance to make a positive impact. It’s human nature to want to deal with people who we think understand us better. If there’s a way that we can lighten the load for law enforcement and create a group or project that would potentially transform people’s lives, we need to explore those possibilities.”

Street outreach makes impact in Rapid City

There are about 580,000 homeless individuals in the United States, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Nearly every major city deals with the problem in some capacity, including the recent phenomenon of tent cities or other encampments that provide temporary solutions to those in need.

In South Dakota, there’s a growing consensus that preventative measures based on mental health and drug addiction counseling are the best way to proceed, with public-private partnerships allowing for a more specialized and targeted approach.

Rapid City opened its Care Campus in 2019, a “one-stop shop” facility that offers detox, crisis care and mental health treatment. Pennington County Health and Human Services teams up with groups such as Safe Solutions, which provides overnight accommodation for intoxicated people who might be turned away at some homeless shelters.

Sioux Falls followed in 2021 with The Link, a community triage center designed to help people facing a non-violent behavioral health crisis or substance abuse problem by providing 24/7 access to support services through a partnership between the city and Minnehaha County along with the Sanford and Avera health systems.

As homeless numbers increase, however, finding enough trained staff to make a difference has proved difficult, putting more pressure on law enforcement. The street outreach strategy involves city governments contracting with private groups that work with displaced individuals to try to gradually integrate them into society or merely keep them safe from harm.

Journey On is a non-profit organization formed in Rapid City in 2019 to address rising friction between predominantly Native American unsheltered individuals and local businesses, which has sparked confrontations with law enforcement. Mayor Steve Allender and Police Chief Don Hedrick have said that more than 60% of police calls in Rapid City are related to homelessness, which led city leaders to try a different approach.

“For Sioux Falls, this might be a preventative strategy that could keep (the homeless issue) from rising to the level of a public health threat, but in Rapid City we’re already there,” said Rich Braunstein, outreach director for Journey On, which entered a contract with the city in January of 2022 that also involves Volunteers of America.

Journey On has 16 team members, all of them Indigenous and many of them experienced with homelessness themselves, who hit the streets in four vans wearing signature green apparel to forge connections in the interest of public safety. Calls to Journey On range from local businesses letting them know about an intoxicated person in an alley or a concerned citizen pointing out a mother and children who are not equipped to be out in the cold. The vans roll regardless of whether there is a situation to react to because being proactive is part of the strategy.

“We go into the community every day to identify people who are unsheltered or vulnerable,” said Braunstein, a political science professor at the University of South Dakota who is also a Journey On board member. “We initiate those contacts. We’re not sitting in a station waiting for a call. We try to build a relationship of trust, visiting with them again and again and again until they’re willing to accept services.”

Team members are on duty six days a week from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. (noon to 9 p.m. on Saturdays) and take as many as 80 calls a day from businesses, Braunstein said. They can also be assigned to handle 911 calls for non-violent incidents. Where police officers might need to wrap up a situation quickly to get to the next call, Journey Up staff can spend several hours with vulnerable individuals, who they refer to as “relatives” while using Lakota kinship terms.

“There was recognition among law enforcement that in order for the community to heal and grow, the Native community needed to be empowered to address some of the greatest challenges that it faced,” said Braunstein. “Police officers aren’t social workers, although they’re asked to be social workers. With our team members having a shared lived experience in vulnerable neighborhoods, they’re able to de-escalate by their very presence, like a brother or a sister coming to respond to the person on the street. It’s a win-win, because it allows the police to focus on violent victimization and policing at a higher level.”

Finding safety and respect on the streets

Monique “Muffie” Mosseau adopts a more independent approach to helping those on the streets, preferring to stay separate from groups that partner with law enforcement. Her Rapid City-based group, Uniting Resilience, works to champion Native Two-Spirit LGBTQ rights, putting her in contact with young people on their own without shelter, often alienated from family members.

Mosseau and her wife, Felipa De Leon, interact with the homeless community to hand out jackets, gloves and hygiene products, and her Oglala Lakota heritage brings a level of trust and understanding that can’t be matched at city-sanctioned shelters.

“Most of us have gone through a reservation system that gives us a common thread of trauma,” said Mosseau, who grew up in Pine Ridge. “We don’t consider the ‘homeless’ to be homeless. Many were pushed away from families that were shaming them in accordance with the colonial way. We ask them, ‘Why are you out here?’ And the one word that everyone says is, ‘Freedom.’ That’s a powerful statement. They got away from the expectations that society places on them.”

That’s not to say they don’t need help. Many are caught in a cycle of addiction that makes it difficult for them to break away and find a different path. Mousseau said there is more of a Native American outreach effort in Rapid City than Sioux Falls, but both cities’ struggles to care for displaced individuals pales in comparison to what she saw while helping deliver food and services in Salt Lake City, Utah.

“That was a real eye-opener,” she said. “After about a half-hour at a homeless feed in Salt Lake, I had to pull myself away and go to the car and I completely broke down. I could not believe the difference. It’s horrific. They have to do drugs to stay up just to stay safe and not be assaulted while they sleep. Some of them stay up for 10 days straight and then go far away from everybody and crash. That’s how unsafe it is.”

Being well-known in the Two Spirit LGBTQ community allows Mousseau and De Leon to help that segment of the homeless population, which is among the most vulnerable. She recalls meeting a young man from Ohio who was driven from his home by violence after revealing to his father that he was gay.

“Homophobia has pushed a lot of people out into the streets,” Mousseau said. “This was a blond, blue-eyed kid who ran away because his dad beat him up. He was 15 at the time and we met him when he was 22 years old in Rapid City after living in a bunch of places. We helped him get his ID so he could get a job at Pizza Hut. Homeless people don’t come out to each other (regarding their sexuality), but in a roundabout way they’ll find us and take us aside and open up. It’s all about safety and respect. They know that whatever they say is safe with us.”

Sioux Falls plan could be approved in January

In Sioux Falls, the Homeless Task Force is working with Mayor Paul TenHaken and his staff on funding for the street outreach plan so it can be taken to the city council. Committee Chair Merkouris, a pastor at King of Glory Church in Sioux Falls, hopes to get a specific proposal in front of the council in January. If the funding is approved, organizations could then apply to be chosen to partner with the city for street outreach operations.

The task force plans to require that whatever group is chosen prioritizes Native American experiences and partners with the Helpline Network of Care, an infrastructure system that allows social service agencies to share information with one other.

Merkouris believes the organization selected could come from a host of local groups that do similar work in Sioux Falls, whether it’s South Dakota Urban Indian Health, Southeastern Behavioral Health, Union Gospel Mission or some other agency. But they would have to enhance and expand their mode of operations.

“None currently do street work with a Native American component,” said Merkouris, adding that those services will be part of a financial commitment the contracted group will have to make. “The cost we put forward (as a city) is not estimated to cover the full cost of the street team. It’s our expectation that other grants will be pursued, and this (public money) will enhance the services that the organization is able to provide.”

Among the details yet to be worked out is how the street outreach group will coexist with Sioux Falls law enforcement, but Merkouris has spoken with officials in Rapid City and hopes to adopt some of their model of coordinating 911 calls. Thum, the Sioux Falls police chief, admitted that there might be trial and error in the early stages, but he believes the growing pains are a necessary part of addressing the issue of homelessness before it becomes a larger problem.

“Many times, there’s pressure on city government and other entities that when they roll out a program, it’s going to be 100% functioning without issues from the start,” Thum said. “But I think if we never try or never start, we’ll just get what we’ve always had. This endeavor might start looking one way and then evolve into something else, but unless we get it started, we’ll never know.”

Photo: Monique "Muffie" Mosseau (left) and her wife, Felipa De Leon, have been active in the Rapid City homeless community. Their Rapid City-based group, Uniting Resilience, works to champion Native Two-Spirit LGBTQ rights. Photo: Courtesy of United Resilience.

This article is republished with the permission of South Dakota News Watch.

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White Earth Reservation Business Committee passes feedlot moratorium on reservation

Back on September 21, Bluestem posted in Becker County adopts one-year feedlot moratorium; White Earth Nation shuns CAFOs.

That post has been heavily read in the last week, and new reporting at Red Lake Nation News, the Detroit Lake Tribune and Minnesota Public Radio makes it clear that something's up. And that something involves plans by the industrial-scale Riverview Dairy system.

On Thursday, Red Lake Nation News published a press release White Earth RBC imposes moratorium on factory farm operations on the reservation:

WHITE EARTH, MINN. – Citing the Band's health and safety, water and land resources, and economic security being threatened by proposed factory farming operations on or near the reservation, the White Earth Reservation Business Committee has passed a resolution on Nov. 18 to impose a moratorium on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) and Animal Feedlot Operations (AFOs) constituting environmental hazards.

There are several large factory farms around the edges of the reservation, and a massive 21,000-head dairy cattle feedlot has been proposed by Riverview LLP, just ¾ of a mile west of the reservation. The Riverview operation proposes to spread half of the manure it will produce on Reservation land. In addition, a new large hog feedlot has been proposed within the exterior boundaries of the Reservation in the southwest corner.

The White Earth Reservation includes 530 lakes, 300 miles of rivers and streams, 167,878 acres of wetlands and substantial groundwater resources contained in shallow, unconfined and deeper, layered aquifers.

The proposed dairy cattle operation alone would produce over 1 million pounds of manure per day. These extremely large factory farms also use high-capacity wells that pump tens of millions of gallons of water per year. The proposed dairy cattle operation has asked the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for a permit to take 325 million gallons of water per year from the Wild Rice River, in addition to 40-50 million gallons per year from groundwater.

The purpose of the moratorium is to allow the Band sufficient time to undertake an interdisciplinary process of data collection, review, analysis and regulatory and technology development sufficient to regulate CAFOs and pollution hazard AFOs in a manner that protects the Band's core interests related to human health, natural resource protection and economic security.

The moratorium shall be in effect for two years from the date of adoption, unless terminated earlier or extended further by an ordinance duly adopted by the White Earth Reservation RBC.

Read the Google document of the White Earth Resolution 057-23-006 here.

For the DL Online, Nathan Bowe reported on Tuesday in White Earth sets two-year moratorium on new feedlots within its boundaries, including northern Becker County:

 The White Earth Tribal Council has passed a two-year moratorium on confined animal feedlots within the boundaries of the reservation, which includes 12 of Becker County’s 37 townships.

The reservation also includes all of Mahnomen County and part of Clearwater County.

Citing concerns over health and safety, water and land resources, and economic security in White Earth “being threatened by proposed factory farming operations on or near the reservation,” the Tribal Council passed a resolution on Nov. 18 “to impose a moratorium on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) and Animal Feedlot Operations (AFOs) constituting environmental hazards,” according to a White Earth news release.

“There are several large factory farms around the edges of the reservation,” it continues, “and a massive 21,000-head dairy cattle feedlot has been proposed by Riverview LLP, just three-quarters of a mile west of the Reservation.”

The Riverview operation proposes to spread half of the manure it will produce on reservation land. In addition, a new large swine feedlot has been proposed within the exterior boundaries of the reservation – in Spring Creek Township in Becker County.

Becker County earlier put a one-year moratorium on new feedlots, but approved the Spring Creek feedlot (pending approval of a road agreement) because the zoning request came in prior to the county moratorium.

White Earth says it has the right to protect water resources inside its boundaries, which include 530 lakes, 300 miles of rivers and streams, 167,878 acres of wetlands and substantial groundwater resources contained in shallow, unconfined and deeper, layered aquifers.

The proposed Riverview dairy cattle operation alone would produce over a million pounds of manure per day, according to the news release. “These extremely large factory farms also use high-capacity wells that pump tens of millions of gallons of water per year,” the release states. The proposed dairy cattle operation has asked the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for a permit to take 325 million gallons of water per year from the Wild Rice River, in addition to 40-50 million gallons per year from groundwater.

The purpose of the two-year moratorium is to give White Earth time to carry out an interdisciplinary process of data collection, review, analysis and regulatory and technology development in order to regulate large feedlots “in a manner that protects the band’s core interests related to human health, natural resource protection and economic security,” according to the news release.

The two-year moratorium kicked in on Nov. 18, when it was approved 4-0 by the White Earth Reservation Business Committee, informally known as the tribal council. . . .

There's more at the DL. Heck, there's even an interesting back story.

On November 16 (two days before the tribal council voted, Bowe reported in Becker County commissioners try to run out the clock on White Earth involvement in pig feedlot:

If the proposal for a pig feedlot in Spring Creek Township was a football game, you could say the Becker County Board scrambled to avoid a blitz by the White Earth Legal Department on Tuesday.

Like a loose ball on the one-yard line, the township and the project applicants — local farmers Eric and Erica Zurn — have been fighting over the details of a road maintenance agreement, an agreement that was required by the county board when it approved the original conditional use permit for the feedlot.

The road agreement was left up to the two parties to work out, and could have made either the township, or the feedlot owners — or some combination of the two — responsible for all repairs and maintenance on 350th Street leading to the feedlot site.

That seemed to put the ball in the township’s hands, since it had final say over the road agreement. So when the Zurns were not able to come to an arrangement with the township, feedlot supporters on the county board tried an end-around.

They presented two road agreements for commissioner consideration, but the play was broken up when it came to light that neither road agreement had actually been approved by the township board, and that Spring Creek township supervisors had been blindsided by the action.

The township, it should be said, opposed the feedlot from the start, but did not have any ordinance in place to stop it.

The county also lacked an ordinance to cover large confined feedlots, like the one planned for Spring Creek Township, which is for 999 “animal-units.” That’s just under the 1,000 animal-unit threshold requiring an environmental assessment worksheet by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, which regulates all feedlots in Becker County.

A pig under 300 pounds only counts as about a third of one “animal unit,” so the proposed feedlot will actually hold about 3,000 young pigs and breeding sows.

At any rate, the county approved the project on Sept. 6, but later slapped a moratorium on future requests until it can update its ordinance governing feedlots.

Meanwhile, the Zurns despaired of getting a favorable road agreement, and went to the county planning commission to amend their conditional use permit and remove the requirement for a road agreement.

Spring CreekTownship objected, but the planning commission gave the request the thumbs up – voting to ditch the road agreement, but requiring that the Zurns maintain the road during construction, and pay for any damage caused by heavy equipment.

That amended conditional use permit went back to the county board on Tuesday for final approval.

That’s where the White Earth Legal Department comes in.

During the open forum part of the county board meeting, White Earth Environmental Counsel Jamie Konopacky argued that the amended conditional use permit is actually a new CUP, and should be treated as such.

Because the feedlot is within White Earth boundaries, the county and state must bow to federal law, so “it was an error for the county to issue the conditional use permit (for a confined animal feedlot) that directly threatens tribal member health and welfare and tribal waters and other natural resources,” Konopacky said in a letter to the county.

Becker County, she said, should have consulted with the tribe and included conditions to meet its concerns — such as avoiding land application of manure that could lead to high phosphorus levels in the soil and high nitrate levels in the water. That in turn, she said, threatens wild rice, mussels and fish, and contributes to E. coli contamination.

The tribe also wants comprehensive water monitoring networks beneath confined animal feedlots and anywhere manure is applied to the land, which is a common way to dispose of feedlot manure. . . .

Read the rest at DL Online. Some visitors may remember reading about White Earth's own farming ambitions in Christopher Vondracek's mid-September reporting White Earth Reservation tribal college plants a farm, hopes for food independence.

And there's the Native Harvest owned by the non-profit White Earth Land Recovery Project.

Indeed, White Earth Nation citizens have ideas about food and land sovereignty--and are explore those visions in their community.

At Minnesota Public Radio, Dan Gunderson focuses on broader land sovereignty issues in White Earth Nation imposes moratorium on large livestock farms:

White Earth Nation leaders say proposed large farming operations threaten the Band’s health and safety, water and land resources, and economic security.

On Nov. 18, the tribal council approved a two-year moratorium on projects within the boundaries of the reservation, located in northwestern Minnesota.

Tribal officials said the ban will allow time for development of regulations for large animal feeding operations.

“We're going to do our due diligence here back home with our treaties and our sovereignty,” said Tribal Chairman Michael Fairbanks at a meeting to approve the moratorium.

Fairbanks said Minnesota agencies regulating such operations were informed about the White Earth Nation's plans for a moratorium.

“And we're going to do it in a good positive way to create our own laws and create what we want on this reservation, not what they want on this reservation,” he said.

Concern for wild rice

Tribal officials said the White Earth Reservation includes 530 lakes, 300 miles of rivers and streams, and substantial groundwater resources.

Fairbanks pointed to a specific large project he said would threaten to pollute some of those streams.

“And they flow directly into our Big Rice lake,” said Fairbanks. “So you’ve got to remember that we're protecting our waters but also we're protecting our manoomin. It's so important. They don't realize how important that our wild rice is to our economy here at White Earth.”

Tribal officials said they felt an urgency to act because of the increase in proposed large livestock operations on and near the Reservation. . . .

Increasing use of tribal authority

Tribal Nations have increasingly exercised regulatory authority, and the Federal Environmental Protection Agency recently announced a proposal to revise the federal water quality regulations to better protect tribal rights under the federal Clean Water Act. The agency is currently taking public comments on the proposed regulatory changes.

Minnesota agencies are saying little about the White Earth moratorium.

The Department of Agriculture said in a statement that it “recognizes the sovereign rights of the White Earth Nation, including their right to implement a moratorium.” The agency said it looks forward to conversations with tribal officials about the issue.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the Department of Natural Resources have not yet responded to a request for comment.

Read the entire article at MPR. 

Photo: Harvesting wild rice on the White Earth Nation's reservation, circa 2013. Via Thriving Earth Exchange's White Earth Nation: Water Quality page.

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South Dakota Searchlight: Noem pairs big cut with big spending in proposed budget plan

In Walz touts opportunities from massive $17.6B budget surplus, Steve Karnowsi and Trisha Ahmed report for the Associated Press that Minnesota's Governor plans to unveil his budget on January 24 for the two fiscal years starting July 1.  

We expect lots of performative squabbling in the North Star State over that.

Here in South Dakota, Governor Kristi Noem shared her budget on Tuesday. We're fond of elimination of grocery sales taxes and the free college tuition for National Guard soldiers though some of her fellow Republicans still aren't fond of the former.

UPDATE: At Dakota Free Press, Cory Allen Heidelberger provided a fine explanatory graph (source:Governor Kristi Noem, proposed budget for FY2024, released 2022.12.06) in Noem Growing State Budget and Dependence on Federal Money:

[end update]

From the South Dakota Searchlight:

Noem pairs big cut with big spending in budget plan
by MaKenzie Huber

Gov. Kristi Noem proposed South Dakota’s largest-ever state budget and biggest-ever tax cut Tuesday in her 2022 budget address, along with improved pay and benefits for state employees, money for new and improved prisons, free college tuition for National Guard soldiers, and numerous other proposals.

Noem said the tax cut – a proposed elimination of the state sales tax on groceries – and the increased spending are justified by a booming economy, large reserves, surging tax revenue and millions in available one-time funds.

“The people of South Dakota deserve safe planning that protects them from future tax increases or drastic cuts to state services,” Noem said in the address, delivered to legislators in the Capitol’s House chamber.

Noem’s proposed fiscal year 2024 budget would be the largest in South Dakota history, at over $7.2 billion. Compared to the adopted 2023 budget, that would be a 25% increase. Lawmakers will consider Noem’s proposals when they convene next month for the annual legislative session in Pierre.

Noem boasted that the state has $423 million in reserves, ending last year with a record-breaking budget surplus of $115.5 million. 

This year, the state is on track to beat revenue projections again by $58.8 million, setting the state up with a $135.3 million surplus so far this fiscal year. Sales tax alone is running $81.8 million ahead of the estimate the Legislature adopted, Noem added.

Noem’s office expects $310 million in new ongoing revenue available for fiscal year 2024 with $216 million in one-time revenue as well.

Tony Venhuizen, an incoming Republican state representative from Sioux Falls who will be vice chair of House Appropriations, said the revenue growth is “practically unprecedented.” 

“That’s an opportunity but also a challenge,” Venhuizen said. “It’s going to be difficult to judge how long that will continue.”

Eliminating state sales tax on groceries

That revenue growth gives South Dakota the opportunity to cut taxes, Noem said. Eliminating the sales tax on groceries would cut about $100 million in revenue, dropping the anticipated new ongoing revenue from $310 million to $208 million. Noem has called the proposal the biggest tax cut in state history.

“The people of South Dakota overwhelmingly want this tax cut, and they know we can afford it,” Noem said. “… My team and I are fully confident that this is the right tax cut at the right time. Let’s get it done.”

However, some legislators are skeptical that the tax cut is fiscally responsible. Senate President Pro Tempore Lee Schoenbeck, R-Watertown, said the tax cut is “obviously problematic.”

The state received unprecedented levels of federal funding from pandemic stimulus programs in recent years. To cut the sales tax when such federal spending isn’t continuous, Schoenbeck said, would affect the state’s stability and budget going forward.

“You can’t do that unless you think the feds are going to keep spending millions of dollars in our state,” Schoenbeck said. “The extreme increase is caused by federal spending in our state. Fiscal conservatives are saying that we’re not going to go down a path that’ll set us up for an income tax.”

Sen. Reynold Nesiba, D-Sioux Falls and minority leader, applauded Noem’s proposed tax cut, saying Tuesday that Democrats have been working to eliminate the food sales tax for years.

While Nesiba hopes to see legislators eliminate the grocery tax completely, he said he would support a compromise of 2 percentage points cut from the state sales tax on groceries, eliminating about $50 million in revenue by dropping the tax from 4.5 percent to 2.5 percent on groceries. 

House Republicans have yet to identify their priorities for the session, Venhuizen said.

“It’s too early to say we’ll support one plan or the other,” Venhuizen said, “but we certainly see the merit in what the governor is proposing and we’ll keep talking.”

risons, National Guard tuition & more

Nesiba also said he is supportive of Noem’s recommended 100% tuition coverage for National Guard soldiers at state universities and technical colleges (an increase from the current 50% at state universities and 80% at technical colleges), and her plan for a 5% pay increase for state employees. 

However, the pay raise for state employees doesn’t keep pace with the nation’s current 8% inflation, leaving workers with a wage cut, Nesiba added. Failing to keep pace with inflation puts the state at a disadvantage when competing for workers in a tight labor market.

“It didn’t go nearly far enough,” Nesiba said. “Our revenues are robust enough and there is enough in reserves where we can simultaneously cut taxes, increase spending and balance the budget. The big debate will be how much to cut taxes and increase spending to balance the budget.”

Noem said her budget does include $11 million for targeted pay increases for state workers and another $11 million in added benefits. In addition to the 5 percent pay increase for state workers, Noem is also proposing a 5 percent increase in state aid to public schools.

In the realm of public safety, Noem proposed spending about $400 million to renovate and construct new prisons.

$60 million of that money is intended for a proposed 300-bed women’s minimum-security prison in Rapid City. Another $341.6 million would go toward purchasing land, conducting engineering and design, and eventually building a replacement for the state penitentiary in Sioux Falls.

Noem said she wants to use excess reserve funds to help pay for the prison projects.

Schoenbeck said he supports addressing the prison needs.

“Those are unattractive things to deal with and are extremely expensive,” Schoenbeck said. “It takes some gravitas to do that. I’m told that’ll be $800 million by the time we’re done with those two prisons.”

Other spending Noem proposed to the Legislature includes:

• $22 million in targeted increased reimbursement rates for care facilities across the state, including a 21% increase in funding for nursing homes, 17% increase to community support providers for South Dakotans with developmental disabilities, and a 26% increase for psychiatric residential treatment facilities.
• $25.6 million in one-time funding to finish projects in progress, including the State Public Health Lab, Board of Regents projects and the Dakota Events CompleX at the State Fair.
• Covering 100% of state employees’ pay while on family leave, which is currently paid at 60%.

The next step for legislators is to meet beginning in January and discuss each of the topics covered in Noem’s address and how best to move forward.

“We don’t want to be in a position where we find ourselves in a hole in a couple of years,” Venhuizen said. “In the meantime, we have a lot of opportunities.”

Here's South Dakota Public Broadcasting's YouTube channel video of the budget address:

This article is republished online under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. 

Related posts

• Kristi Noem’s TikTok ban kills tourism account, leaves other state entities mulling options
• SD Searchlight news brief: Leadership teams lean moderate in South Dakota House, Senate
• The mahogany table of destiny; or, Noem in Florida, closer to Lewandowski than Trump
• SD Searchlight: Noem’s sales-tax promise shows panic during a campaign that should be easy
• South Dakota Standard on Noem's economy 

Photo: Gov. Kristi Noem presents her fiscal year 2024 budget proposal to legislators on Dec. 6, 2022, at the Capitol in Pierre. (Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)

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Rep. Hansen goes to Washington; attends White House convening with state legislative leaders

In the Outdoor Section of the Star Tribune,Tony Kennedy recently called South St. Paul DFLer Rick Hansen, chair of the Minnesota House Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy Committee, "the dean of outdoors legislation at the Capitol."

Hansen has been awarded the Pollinator Hero Award, and the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators (NCEL) awarded him the Leon G. Billings Environmental Achievement Award in 2020.

Now, he's at the White House.

Wednesday morning, Hansen tweeted an article by Associated Press reporter Colleen Long, along with a note about the section in which he attended:

White House invites in state lawmakers before 2023 sessions | AP News. ✅An honor to be a part of this : 🇺🇸Building a Cleaner, More Sustainable America: Climate, Infrastructure, Environmental Justice #mnleg #climate https://t.co/fhZzSPAfyo

— Rep. Rick Hansen (@reprickhansen) December 7, 2022

Bluestem recommends reading the entire article. Here's a taste:

The White House is playing host to roughly 50 Democratic state lawmakers from 31 states this week as legislatures prepare for their upcoming sessions, aiming to talk over strategy on top issues like climate change, gun violence, abortion rights and voting rights. . . .

The legislators will meet with Biden administration policy experts on drug control, veterans affairs, environmental quality, criminal justice, violence prevention and climate change.

In Legislative Update 12/7 - Visit to D.C., Hansen told his constituents about the focus for his visit:

Meeting at the White House

This week I traveled to Washington D.C along with legislators from 32 other states to discuss our state priorities for the 2023 session. My visit focused on climate and environmental issues including building a cleaner more sustainable country, climate infrastructure and environmental justice.

I was given the opportunity to highlight some of the work we will focus on this year to ensure Minnesota is a climate leader. Along with our strong state budget, the Inflation Reduction Act will provide over $2.6 billion for infrastructure and climate projects. This is the exact type of coordination between state and federal policy makers we need if we are to tackle the climate crisis. I’m excited to carry this momentum into the 2023 session to make this a banner year for climate action.

If you would like to learn more about how the inflation reduction act will benefit our efforts, here is a fact sheet as it relates to environmental justice, and one as it relates to climate change.

UPDATE 12/7/2022 --4:15 p.m.

The Minnesota House of Representatives just sent out this statement by Hansen:

Rep. Hansen Visits White House to Discuss Climate Action for the 2023 Session

St. Paul, MN - This week, Rep. Rick Hansen (DFL – South Saint Paul), the incoming chair of the House Environment and Natural Resources Policy and Finance Committee, attended a meeting of state legislators at the White House to discuss climate policy for the 2023 session. Overall, the event had legislators from 32 states and covered several issue areas, with Rep. Hansen’s time focusing on climate, infrastructure, and environmental justice.

“I would like to thank the White House for hosting this important event so we can work across the nation to ensure we are doing what we need to do to fight climate change. This is the exact type of coordination between state and federal policy makers that we need if we are to tackle the climate crisis. We were able to discuss what Minnesota plans to pursue this year and pick up ideas from other state leaders. I’m excited to carry this momentum into the 2023 session to make this a banner year for climate action.”

During an opportunity to present what he would like to pursue, Rep. Hansen discussed legacy contaminants and the importance of addressing chemical, physical, and biological pollution (such as CWD and invasive species) when pursuing sustainable climate infrastructure and environmental justice. Rep. Hansen also discussed the opportunity to match federal dollars to clean up past problems while preparing for the future. [end update]

A note on "Environmental Justice"

Now, judging from the ignorance--feigned or otherwise-- about the meaning of "environmental justice" from some Republican state representative I heard earlier this year in Chair Hansen's House Environment and Natural Resources Finance and the House ag committee, Bluestem wonders whether there will be catcalls on social media about the definition of this phrase.

I recommend reading the 2020  House Select Committee on Racial Justice: Report to the Legislature, which provides this definition on page 10:

Environmental Justice

“The principle of environmental justice asserts that no people, based on their race or economic status, should be forced to bear a disproportionate burden of environmental risks.^”13

“Environmental justice deals explicitly with the distribution of environmental benefits and the burdens people experience, at home, at work, or where they learn, play, worship and spend leisure time.”¹⁴ In short, environmental justice is an important part of the struggle to improve and maintain a clean and healthful environment, especially for those who have traditionally lived, worked, and played closest to the sources of pollution.

The sources for the quotations, by superscript:

¹³ “What Is Environmental Justice and Why Should We Care?” Sustainability Office, Colgate University, April
23, 2014.
¹⁴ Social and environmental justice, Forest Research, https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/tools-andresources/urban-regeneration-and-greenspace-partnership/greenspace-in-practice/practical-considerations-andchallenges-to-greenspace/social-and-environmental-justice

The sources in these documents date back to 2000, so it's not concept cooked up last month. Now, we're not sure if that concept is exactly the same definition that the White House gathering is using, though Bluestem suspects that Hansen will use his habitual methodical care to share and explain.

Should any Republican state representatives have questions about "environmental justice," Bluestem recommends that they touch base with House Select Committee on Racial Justice Vice Chair Representative Lisa Demuth (page 4), the ranking Republican on the select committee.

Session Daily reported on November 11 that Demuth is to lead House Republicans in 2023-24 biennium, so perhaps the House Minority Leader can help them out before anyone gets too confused.

Update: Senator-elect Erin Maye Quade at White House

MPR's Brian Bakst tweeted that

From #mnleg: Sen.-elect @ErinMayeQuade is presenting on abortion/reproductive rights.

"It's really important that state legislators are meeting together and able to share ideas, share strategies and build power together."

Also: State @reprickhansen on environmental issues. https://t.co/rPvqpv4mGK

— Brian Bakst (@Stowydad) December 7, 2022

In the same thread, Bakst tweets Emma Greenman and Leigh Finke were also at the White House:

Rep. @emmagreenman and Rep.-elect @leighfinke also were at White House sessions this week. https://t.co/dJNG9gqiIl

— Brian Bakst (@Stowydad) December 7, 2022

[end update]

Photo: Hansen and other state legislators from across the country at the White House. From Legislative Update 12/7 - Visit to D.C.

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Session Daily: Projected $17.6 billion budget surplus presents ‘golden opportunities’

I had errands to run with my romantic partner, whose vehicle is in the shop. Bluestem will post this non-partisan reporting from Session Daily, while searching for poor country blogger nuances.

The HPIS staff reports in Projected $17.6 billion budget surplus presents ‘golden opportunities’:

The state's financial situation continues to get better.

Minnesota Management and Budget officials released the November 2022 Budget and Economic Forecast Tuesday, saying the state's projected budget surplus is now a record $17.6 billion.

The forecast provides the most recent snapshot of the state's financial health. Lawmakers will use it to begin looking at budgeting and policy decisions to be made during the 2023 legislative session, which is scheduled to begin Jan. 3 and must end by May 22.

"Strong collections and lower-than-projected spending add to the FY22-23 surplus. Economic headwinds lower expected growth but large leftover surplus and healthy net revenues in FY24-25 create estimated $17.6B available for budget,” according to a statement.

[MORE: View the budget presentation slides]

The sizable number presents “golden opportunities” to do things in many different areas, said Gov. Tim Walz.

Walz plans to release his budget proposal Jan. 24. Increased education funding and child care expansion assistance are all but certain. Local government aid is also among the possibilities.

He plans to again propose rebate checks, an idea that failed to get legislative approval earlier this year; he’s open to tweaking the state tax on Social Security; but the governor won’t be offering a tax cut for wealthy Minnesotans. Incoming House Majority Leader Jamie Long (DFL-Mpls) and incoming Senate Majority Leader Kari Dziedzic (DFL-Mpls) were noncommittal on rebate checks or social security tax changes. Each said they need to let members of their caucuses weigh in.

Here's Walz's media appearance on the House Information Services' YouTube Channel:

[MORE: Current operating budget for 2022-23 biennium]

A forecast expected to be released in late February will provide more updated numbers to help legislators and the governor finalize their plans for spending in the 2024-25 biennium that begins July 1, 2023.

After failing to agree on many spending differences during the 2022 session, the Legislature left an estimated $7 billion on the books. Since then, monthly state revenue estimates have continued to better expectations, and are now predicted to be $3.5 billion higher during the current biennium than was estimated in February.

At the same time, spending is expected to be about $1.5 billion lower due mainly to a $280 million decrease in E-12 education spending caused by lower pupil counts and a $1.1 billion drop in health and human services spending. Extensions of public health emergency funding from the federal government meant the state spent less than was expected.

The $5 billion increase combined with the $7 billion that was left unspent means the state is now expected to carryforward $12 billion into the next biennium.

Inflation missing, economic outlook

The overall total could be a bit misleading, especially if a recession were to occur. A 2002 law repealed the inclusion of inflation when projecting expenses.

Rep. Jennifer Schultz (DFL-Duluth) told a House committee in February she believes Minnesota is the only state to account for inflation in projected revenue, but not expenses.

Officials said the forecast does include a mild U.S. recession in 2023 and slower economic growth through 2027. They predict a “three-quarter recession” with a recovery expected to begin the third quarter of 2023.

Inflation continues to be a concern and is now expected to be 8.1% this year, 3.6% higher than was forecast in February. This latest forecast predicts the Federal Reserve will continue to raise interest rates through next spring but could then reverse course and begin lowering them in spring of 2024.

MMB also said that while Minnesota’s labor market remains one of the country’s strongest, employment growth is expected to slow from 3.1% in 2022 to 0.3% in 2023, then remain flat in 2024.

The forecast did include several risk factors that could change the outlook, including uncertainties about inflation, monetary policy, a slow growing economy that is “vulnerable to shocks” and volatility in corporate profits and capital gains.

Here's the response to the November 2022 Budget and Economic Forecast by Senate Majority Leader-elect Kari Dziedzic (DFL-Mpls), House Majority Leader-elect Jamie Long (DFL-Mpls) and Representative Athena Hollins (DFL-Saint Paul) on the House Information Service's YouTube channel (click on the arrow and the video will play, as much as this appears to a blank slate):

House leaders react

“Great news,” is how House Speaker Melissa Hortman (DFL-Brooklyn Park) termed the projected surplus.

“Our state is in a strong position to take decisive action to solve big challenges,” she said in a statement. “A workforce shortage is constraining our economic growth, making it even more important that we focus on things that help Minnesotans enter and stay in the workforce — like job training, education, child care assistance, paid family leave, and more. It is also a time to roll out the welcome mat for people who choose to move to Minnesota and expand our workforce.”

In a statement, House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth (R-Cold Spring) said the figure should keep any tax hikes off the table.

“Minnesotans are being massively overtaxed, and we should spend most of the next session working to give as much of it back to Minnesotans as possible. Tax hikes of any kind should be a complete non-starter. Families deserve their money back as they continue to deal with the high cost of groceries, home heating bills, and other everyday necessities." 

Here's the response to the November 2022 Budget and Economic Forecast by House Minority Leader-elect Lisa Demuth (R-Cold Spring) via the House Information Services' YouTube channel: 

Looks like a lot of negotiation and such will be happening.

Senate Media Services published this story, State Budget Surplus Grows, Lawmakers Respond:

Minnesota's projected budget surplus grew to $17.6 billion since lawmakers adjourned the 2022 legislative session, and state revenues are expected to exceed state spending through Fiscal Year 2027. Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner Jim Schowalter presented the upbeat budget news at a media event Tuesday, January 6. He expressed caution; however, stating that "economic headwinds are coming our way." He further explained that the forecast does not calculate the impact of inflation on state spending.

Referencing the latest news, Governor Tim Walz said, "While it's a positive budget report today, it doesn't tell the whole story." He said it fails to tell the story of a parent struggling to find child care or families struggling with high gas and food prices. It also fails to tell the story of the need to provide resources to schools in support of struggling students. "The macro picture is solid. The golden opportunity that we have to make Minnesota an even better and fairer and more inclusive and more prosperous state is there."

Senate Majority Leader Kari Dziedzic said, "We will use this tremendous opportunity to help Minnesotans afford their lives." She said legislators will pass "a bold, balanced budget that will keep our economy strong, help families and workers, and keep Minnesota as a national leader in so many areas."

In a released statement, Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson said, "This surplus continues to show that the government is doing well - we have another hefty surplus and a brimming budget reserve. This is the moment policymakers must step up to put the needs of Minnesotans first. We are being battered with high property taxes, rapid inflation, rising energy costs, and a looming recession. We need real relief that all Minnesotans can count on for years to come.”

Meanwhile here in South Dakota, a different story broke about state finances.

Here's what Gov. Kristi Noem is proposing in her proposed $7.2 billion budget, Annie Todd reports at the Sioux Falls Leader. And there's Want to read Gov. Kristi Noem's budget address verbatim? We have it for you.

Photo: The Quadriga, on the dome of the Minnesota State Capitol. All that glitters isn't gold.

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SD Searchlight: Senator Rounds, Thune criticize Trump’s call for ‘termination’ of the Constitution

Like many Americans, I've been concerned about former President Donald Trump's call for the "termination" of the United States Constitution. Having spent nearly five years working in The Library Company of Philadelphia--used by the framers of the document-- the Constitution holds a spot in my heart.

Here in South Dakota, both US senators have spoken against Trump's declaration.

Seth Tupper reports in the South Dakota Searchlight article, Rounds criticizes Trump’s call for ‘termination’ of the Constitution:

U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, R-South Dakota, is criticizing former president Donald Trump for proposing the “termination” of the U.S. Constitution.

Rounds issued a written statement by email Monday afternoon.

“Americans have a deep appreciation for the Constitution and our Founding Fathers who risked their lives to establish it,” Rounds’ statement said, in part. “As elected officials, we take an oath to support and defend the Constitution. We should never dishonor that oath. No one is above the Constitution.”

Rounds was reacting to Trump’s Saturday post on Trump’s own social media platform, Truth Social. In that post, Trump reiterated his claims of fraud in the 2020 election: “A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution.”

After widespread condemnation from Democrats and some Republicans, Trump went on Truth Social again Monday and wrote, “The Fake News is actually trying to convince the American People that I said I wanted to ‘terminate’ the Constitution. This is simply more DISINFORMATION & LIES, just like RUSSIA, RUSSIA, RUSSIA, and all of their other HOAXES & SCAMS.”

Rounds has consistently said there was no evidence of fraud in 2020 that was widespread enough to alter the results of the election, which Trump lost to President Joe Biden. Rounds reiterated that stance in his Monday statement and included some language about the next presidential election in 2024, which already includes Trump as a declared candidate on the Republican side.

“Anyone who desires to lead our country must commit to protecting the Constitution. They should not threaten to terminate it,” Rounds said. “I believe Americans want leaders, like those on Mount Rushmore, who will defend the Constitution and unite us in our belief that America is truly a shining city upon a hill.”

Meanwhile, a spokesman for Sen. John Thune, R-South Dakota, said Thune fielded impromptu questions Monday afternoon from reporters in a Washington, D.C., hallway about Trump’s call for “termination” of the Constitution.

“Of course I disagree with that,” Thune said of Trump’s comments. “I swear an oath to uphold the Constitution and it is a bedrock principle — it is the principle, the bedrock of our country. So I couldn’t disagree more.”

Spokespeople for U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-South Dakota, and Republican Gov. Kristi Noem did not immediately respond to Searchlight questions about Trump’s comments.

Here's hoping South Dakotans hear from Johnson and Noem about Trump's position soon.

This article is republished online under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Help South Dakota Searchlight with a donation here.

Photo:  U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, R-South Dakota, speaks during a Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee hearing on Jan. 27, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Photo Sarah Silbiger-Pool/Getty Images/ via South Dakota Searchlight).

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Star Tribune editorial board praises Prinsburg for rejecting Miller's post-legislative career builder

Perhaps Bluestem is overly optimistic to fancy that retiring Minnesota state representative Tim Miller has met his Waterloo with the rejection of his anti-reproductive freedom ordinance by his hometown's city council.

We mostly recently posted about this in Prinsburg rejects PLAM ordinance update: tasty tidbits from the latest Star Tribune coverage  and West Central Tribune: City Council in Prinsburg, MN rejects proposed abortion ordinance.

But at least he's getting the attention he deserves from the editorial board at the Star Tribune.

Some of the wisdom in A failed try to stoke abortion controversy:

. . . unlike Texas, Prinsburg is in a state where no less an authority than the Minnesota Supreme Court has held, in the 1995 case Doe v. Gomez, that the state Constitution includes the right to terminate a pregnancy.

That did not dissuade Miller, who told a Star Tribune reporter, "This is what God is calling me to do." He had arranged for the deep pockets of the Thomas More Society, a nonprofit law firm specializing in culture-war issues that does not publicly disclose its funding sources, to defend Prinsburg if it had faced court challenges.

Before the Prinsburg City Council decision, Miller said he planned to spread this campaign to deprive women of their constitutional right to other rural communities. The intention, he told the Star Tribune, is not to penalize the woman who has an abortion but to stop "the animals who tell her that's OK and profit from it."

This, of course, presumes that women are easily led astray and couldn't possibly have determined the risks for themselves and come to their own conclusion that the time is not right for them to undertake childbearing. It is an insulting premise, and most Minnesotans have made clear they reject such thinking.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison told an editorial writer last week that the Prinsburg city attorney had contacted his office, "and we have every reason to believe the city attorney will review carefully and follow the laws of the state of Minnesota."

Writing to Prinsburg Mayor Roger Ahrenholz, who has already expressed support for Miller's proposal, Ellison advised that "Any municipal ordinance which limits the fundamental rights of pregnant Minnesotans to receive an abortion is unconstitutional" and that the state has extensive laws regulating the practices of medicine, nursing and pharmacology. "No city in Minnesota has the power to restrict the right to abortion or enact conflicting regulations on health care providers," Ellison wrote.

In a statement posted to the city's website on Friday, city leaders said, "In reaching its decision, the council took into account the position of the Minnesota Attorney General and its City Attorney stating that provisions described in the ordinance are unconstitutional and not within the legal authority of the city to enact. The council plans no further discussion or comment regarding the proposed ordinance."

Ellison said such efforts, even if they are essentially publicity stunts, prove that abortion continues to be an issue deserving of complete legal protection. Reproductive rights, he said, "must be fully defended, because there are clearly activists here who are going to advance their cause any way they can."

One of the best ways to defend those specific rights would be to enshrine them in statute.

The state Legislature now has a reproductive-rights majority. It should use that majority to provide statutory protection under Minnesota law without delay. 

Read the entire editorial at the Star Tribune (we have a subscription).

Bluestem will keep an eye out for Mr. Miller's future publicity stunts. Material like this is why we subscribe to so many newspapers across the state--and check in on rural radio networks' webpages. Willmar Radio first reported about Miller's ordinance.

Related posts

• Prinsburg rejects PLAM ordinance update: tasty tidbits from the latest Star Tribune coverage
• West Central Tribune: City Council in Prinsburg, MN rejects proposed abortion ordinance
• Forum News Service: Prinsburg's Texas pro-life hold 'em ordinance gets more ink
• StribGuy: Small Minnesota town may become focus of abortion fight 'cause of Tim Miller
• MN News Network: Prinsburg in west-central MN is “launch site” for new anti-abortion strategy
• Tuesday, Prinsburg City Council heard Tim Miller propose PLAM Action anti-abortion ordinance
• Retiring state rep Miller to push unconstitutional local ordinances for new PLAM Action job.
• Tall grass prairie? State representative Tim Miller goes to Moorhead for grassroots organizing
• Retiring Rep. Tim Miller will work for Brian Gibson at Pro-Life Action Ministries sister group
• We won't have Tim Miller to kick around anymore--at least as a MN House member
• New House Republican Tim Miller shares unique understanding of gas tax in legislative update
• State rep Tim Miller: MN state public officials beholden to radical anti-livestock enviro groups 

Image: The town sign for Prinsburg. Via Alchetron entry for Prinsburg.

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MN BAH: No additional CWD detected in remaining depopulated deer on Winona Co farm

Earlier this year, Bluestem had posted about Chronic Wasting Disease found on Todd Miller's long quaranteed farm in Winona County in MN Board of Animal Health: CWD confirmed in quarantined Winona County captive deer herd and Todd Miller's deer farm was depopulated Tuesday among other posts.

On Monday, the Minnesota Board of Animal Health updated the news on the deer farm in a press release, No additional Chronic Wasting Disease detected in remaining depopulated deer on Winona County farm:

A Winona County deer farm went through a mandatory herd depopulation in October, and no Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) was detected in any of the 120 white-tailed deer tested. The Winona County farm had been quarantined since October 2020 because of its connection to other Minnesota CWD positive farms. In August 2022, CWD was confirmed in a 4-year-old doe in the herd (https://www.bah.state.mn.us/news_release/cwd-confirmed-in-quarantined-winona-county-deer-herd/). A total of three CWD positive deer have been confirmed on this farm when two deer harvested after the August detection also tested positive for CWD.

“Unfortunately, we rarely find a definitive answer to how CWD was introduced into a herd. We will continue to work with farmers and state and federal partners to better understand how these animals were infected,” said Senior Veterinarian Dr. Courtney Wheeler. “We’re fortunate this producer is interested in solving this puzzle and is working with us, the USDA and the University of Minnesota on further research. Tissues from the depopulated deer will be submitted for a federally funded genomic testing project to understand if some deer are more susceptible to CWD than others.”

The Winona County herd actively participated in the national CWD Herd Certification Program since 2012 and tested more than 100 deer for CWD before the disease was detected in August 2022. The herd was in a CWD endemic area of Minnesota where there is a high prevalence of CWD in the wild deer population. The farm and deer enclosures had been double fenced since 2015.

As part of an agreement with state and federal animal health officials, the herd owner is required to clean and disinfect all enclosures and must maintain fencing on the property for five years from the date of the last detection. The farm is not allowed to have any deer or elk for five years, and the property owner must maintain fencing to prevent wild deer from accessing empty pens. Biohazard signs will be posted on the fencing and must be maintained for the entire five-year fallow period.

Update: While wording of the Board of Animal Health press release implies that the agreement is a negotiated settlement, these conditions are in fact law. See 35.155 FARMED CERVIDAE Subd. 11, d:

(d) The owner of a premises where chronic wasting disease is detected must:

(1) depopulate the premises of Cervidae after the federal indemnification process has been completed or, if an indemnification application is not submitted, within a reasonable time determined by the board in consultation with the commissioner of natural resources;

(2) maintain the fencing required under subdivision 4 on the premises for five years after the date of detection; and

(3) post the fencing on the premises with biohazard signs as directed by the board. [end update]

The December 5 press release continues:

CWD is a disease of the deer and elk family caused by prions, which can damage brain and nerve tissue. The disease is most likely transmitted when infected deer and elk shed prions in saliva, feces, urine, and other fluids or tissues. CWD is not known to naturally occur in other animals. The disease is fatal in deer and elk, and there are no known treatments or vaccines. According to the CDC, consuming meat from a CWD positive animal is not advised.

The press release mentions '"Tissues from the depopulated deer will be submitted for a federally funded genomic testing project to understand if some deer are more susceptible to CWD than others.”

Board of Animal Health's November 2022 "Animal Bites" noted:

Determining Genomically Estimated Breeding Value to identify animals least susceptible to CWD

The Board of Animal Health is utilizing USDA CWD Cooperative Agreement Funding to determine the Genomically Estimated Breeding Value (GEBV) in more than 3,000 Minnesota farmed white-tailed deer. The GEBV looks at genetic markers to reduce the animals' susceptibility to CWD. To determine the susceptibility of an individual animal, more than 100,000 regions of the white-tailed deer genome are analyzed using computer modeling and machine learning to identify regions unique to animals known to be CWD positive. All genetic information for animals with a GEBV calculated are saved in the North American Deer Registry database and used for comparison. A computer scans this genomic data and provides a score related to the degree in which it is similar to CWD-positive animals. This allows geneticists to classify animals into three categories: highly susceptible, moderately susceptible, and minimally susceptible. Farmers can use those ratings to make breeding or culling decisions on their farm.

We're not sure if that's the program mentioned in the latest press release, but it sounds pretty close.

Miller is the brother of Minnesota state senator Jeremy Miller, whose service as Majority Leader was brought to a close with the DFL gaining the majority in the upper chamber.

The legislature may move on CWD policy with both chambers under DFL control. Last week in the Outdoors section of the Star Tribune, Tony Kennedy reported in Majority shift in Minn. Senate leads way for new fish and game leader:

. . . [Sen. Foung Hawj (pronounced HER)], who lives near the south end of Lake Phalen and owns 30 acres of recreational land in Kanabec County, said he shares several legislative goals with his counterpart in the House of Representatives, Rick Hansen, D-South St. Paul. . . .

Hawj and Hansen said they'll also look to reform laws pertaining to the oversight of deer farms in Minnesota. State wildlife biologists have told lawmakers that deer farms have contributed to the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in wild deer. One proposal still considered viable by Hansen is to place a moratorium on the establishment of any new deer farms in the state.

"Because of CWD, we need to re-evaluate how to make deer farming safer,'' Hawj said.

Both committee chairs hunt whitetails in Minnesota. Hawj, who is self-deprecating about his bow-hunting and fishing expertise, said he's harvested only a handful of deer in 20 years. "I'm not that skilled, but it allows me to be out there in nature, meditating,'' he said. . . .

We'll be watching to see how much sway the new BAH talking point about the Genomically Estimated Breeding Value (GEBV) and breeding CWD resistant deer has in policy discussions in Hawj and Hansen's committees, as well as the legislature's ag committees.

Related posts

• MN Chronic Wasting Disease dilemma: should new deer farms be blocked? The old bought out?
• Todd Miller's deer farm was depopulated Tuesday 
• Chronic Wasting Disease: St. Louis County permanently bans new or expanded cervid farms 
• On Facebook, operator of CWD doomed Winona County deer farm wears Miller Scrap hat 
• MN Board of Animal Health: CWD confirmed in quarantined Winona County captive deer herd
• Update: More on Miller family deer farm interests
• Senate DFL Leader Franzen raises conflict-of-interest concerns in Republican leader's role overturning bipartisan vote to protect wild deer

Screengrab: The OAH's flow chart of CWD spread to MN deer farms.

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Prinsburg rejects PLAM ordinance update: tasty tidbits from the latest Star Tribune coverage

Bluestem first posted about an unconstitutional municipal ordinance pushed by retiring state representative Tim Miller in our November 16 post, Tuesday, Prinsburg City Council heard Tim Miller propose PLAM Action anti-abortion ordinance.

We left off with Friday's West Central Tribune: City Council in Prinsburg, MN rejects proposed abortion ordinance.

Following in the footsteps of John Reinen's StribGuy: Small Minnesota town may become focus of abortion fight 'cause of Tim Miller, the Star Tribune picks up Prinsburg's rejection in Eder Campuzano's Minnesota town backs down from abortion ordinance. 

Some tidbits from Campuzano's reporting:

The city council in the small western Minnesota town of Prinsburg has unanimously shelved a proposed ordinance that would have allowed its residents to sue abortion providers, passing on the chance to inject itself into the national legal skirmish over abortion.

It's been less than three weeks since the small town south of Willmar drew outsized attention over the proposed ordinance. But on Friday, the council opted not to go forward with the measure sought by a local Republican legislator that echoed legislation in Republican-led states that have been restricting abortion access in the months since the U.S. Supreme overturned Roe vs. Wade.

"In reaching its decision, the council took into account the position of the Minnesota Attorney General and its City Attorney stating that provisions described in the ordinance are unconstitutional and not within the legal authority of the city to enact," city leaders said in a statement posted to the city website. "The council plans no further discussion or comment regarding the proposed ordinance." . . .

Outgoing State Rep. Tim Miller, R-Prinsburg, was pushing for the measure. In an interview Saturday, he contended that it's constitutional despite the city's position and assertions from the state attorney general's office to the contrary.

In a statement, Attorney General Keith Ellison praised the Prinsburg council's vote, saying its members "unanimously recognized the proposed ordinance was both unconstitutional and preempted by state law."

"I thank them for upholding their oaths of office by taking those concerns seriously, and I hope other communities take notice," Ellison said. "It's my job to protect the constitutional rights of Minnesotans in every community to access safe, legal abortion, and I will continue to do it." . . . .

But the money quote goes to Miller himself:

Miller remains undaunted. "I will pit the creator of the universe against Attorney General Ellison and we will win every single time. I am fully confident in that," he said.

Bluestem had no idea the Minnesota Constitution, which Attorney General Ellison works to uphold, was in such mortal combat with the Creator.

Related posts

• West Central Tribune: City Council in Prinsburg, MN rejects proposed abortion ordinance
• Forum News Service: Prinsburg's Texas pro-life hold 'em ordinance gets more ink
• StribGuy: Small Minnesota town may become focus of abortion fight 'cause of Tim Miller
• MN News Network: Prinsburg in west-central MN is “launch site” for new anti-abortion strategy
• Tuesday, Prinsburg City Council heard Tim Miller propose PLAM Action anti-abortion ordinance
• Retiring state rep Miller to push unconstitutional local ordinances for new PLAM Action job.
• Tall grass prairie? State representative Tim Miller goes to Moorhead for grassroots organizing
• Retiring Rep. Tim Miller will work for Brian Gibson at Pro-Life Action Ministries sister group
• We won't have Tim Miller to kick around anymore--at least as a MN House member
• New House Republican Tim Miller shares unique understanding of gas tax in legislative update
• State rep Tim Miller: MN state public officials beholden to radical anti-livestock enviro groups 

Screengrab: A Tim Miller Facebook post in 2014. Perhaps those lawn ornament voters are what Stop the Steal folks mean when they talk about fraud in elections.

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post.

Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email sally.jo.sorensen@gmail.com as recipient.

I'm on Venmo for those who prefer to use this service: @Sally-Sorensen-6