As I finish preparing for the 2026 Legislative Session, I wanted to take time to keep the district up to date on what policies I’ve been working on these last 9 months since session ended. I have authored a very aggressive workload for the session and take your trust in me very seriously. While I expect to personally introduce over ten bills, below are several of the bills I would like to share today:
•An act to clarify how a ballot measure was placed on the ballot. This will instruct the AG to clarify in his ballot expansion on the ballot whether an issue was vetted and placed on the ballot by the Legislature or if a measure was placed on the ballot with citizen signatures and support. This bill is aimed at providing the voters with more information while they are voting, while addressing concerns from antidemocracy legislators that want to restrict the ballot process for citizens.
•An act to reduce the maximum duration for re-employment payments. “Reemployment Payments” commonly referred to as “unemployment checks” can be a critical safety nets for individuals who unexpectedly lose their job while finding a new one, but often these systems can be abused by individuals who don’t want to work. Currently South Dakota allows an individual to stay on Unemployment for up to 6 months. In our current economy with record low unemployment and nearly every business looking for hired help; I don’t believe it fair to expect those with jobs to pay others to stay at home. My bill will propose a 50% reduction limiting the 6 Months of unemployment pay down to 3 months.
•Proposing and submitting to the voters at the next general election an amendment to the Constitution of the State of South Dakota, limiting the number of terms an individual may serve as a member of the Legislature. South Dakota tried creating term limits in the 90’s, but what they really created was chamber limits. Legislators are currently allowed to serve 4 terms in the Senate, 4 terms in the House, and then go right back to the Senate. I don’t believe this game of musical chairs is what the voters envisioned when they wanted to create term limits. This proposal if passed would ask the voters if they want the current system of musical chairs or if they think legislators need to take at least a 2-year break from the legislature after serving 16 consecutive years in Pierre. While some states like North Dakota have a lifetime ban after 16 years, I believe this strikes a better balance for our state.
•Applying to the United States Congress under Article V of the United States Constitution to call for a convention proposing an amendment to the constitution fixing the number of justices of the United States Supreme Court at one chief justice and eight associate justices. Currently Congress decides how many Supreme Court Justices should sit on the high court. They can change the number at any time and have throughout our history for political purposes. This is a first in the nation call by a state legislature to propose a constitutional amendment; taking the power away from Congress and setting the Supreme Court composition at 8 associate justices and 1 chief justice in our Constitution.
•An Act to limit the types of residential improvements for which counties, municipalities, and townships may require a building permit. Currently every governing body has the right to set up their own permitting rules. Each town is different, and it varies county to county. This is because we want to give local control for governments to do what is best for their citizens. However, I believe some governments have infringed too far on the rights of homeowners. My bill will prevent all cities, towns, or townships from requiring a building permit for a homeowner maintaining their home with nonstructural changes. This means if you are reroofing an existing roof, replacing an existing front door, replacing an existing window, replacing siding on your home, or doing nonstructural remodels would no longer be able to charge you fee or require you to ask permission to maintain your own home. Not only do I believe this on principle, but I also believe it’s good policy to make home improvements faster, cheaper, and easier. It would only apply to owner occupied residential property.
•An act to modify the gold severance tax rate. In the mid 90’s the legislature adopted a taxation system on the gold severed in South Dakota. Unfortunately, when they wrote the statute, they set the tax as a “static” number. The state of South Dakota receives four dollars per oz of gold severed, however if the price of gold goes above eight hundred dollars an oz we receive eight dollars per oz. When this was written gold was selling for around four hundred dollars per oz and its currently trading well over four thousand dollars… but we still receive eight dollars. I think this is wrong and poorly written tax that is saving corporately traded companies operating in South Dakota millions of dollars each year. My bill will propose changing the $4/$8 fee to a 1% tax based off the value of Gold. While some could easily argue for more, this will keep it inline with the original intention of the 90’s legislature while also raising millions of dollars for the state in ongoing revenue.
•An act to require that social media companies provide collected personal data of a user at the user’s request and maintain transparent interoperability interfaces. This bill would require social media companies to inform customers of the data collected by the company on the user. I view this as a first step in providing consumer data rights. When you go to a doctor’s office, they keep and use a medical file about you, but you still have a right to that information. I believe this same principle applies as social media companies are collecting personal, private data on their users and users have a right to know.
•An act to provide Privacy of Broadband Internet Customer Information. This bill would require internet service providers to provide opt ins for selling personal data on the customers they serve. Currently these companies are collecting and selling users data without their permission or knowledge. My bill aims to provide real consumer protection for internet users, so they control their own data.
•No Pay, No Stay – Currently if you own or manage a hotel, RV Park, or campground for short term lodging and an individual overstays their reservation they could claim residency and force the business to spend multiple weeks evicting them without pay. My bill would say if you were a hotel, RV Park, or campground and a customer overstays their reservation without paying, the business is allowed to give you 24-hour notice and have the sheriff remove you without going through a formal eviction process. It also establishes damages if a business improperly uses the statute.
•An Act to allow Mobile Sports Wagering. Currently South Dakota doesn’t allow mobile sports wagering, however polymarkets are highly used throughout the state. For those that don’t know, polymarkets are legal work around to mobile sports betting – except they aren’t just on sports – it is on everything from elections, to weather, to what meal the pope will next eat. These are betting markets that are tied to stock trading apps and are taxed by the federal government, but not by our state. Currently the businesses operating these betting channel work arounds are charging fees for their profits in place of a state tax. We are unable to effectively regulate them and by bill would give the voters a chance to weigh in on whether we should have this money flow through Deadwood instead of out-of-state companies. The bill specifies that all revenue made by the state of South Dakota from mobile sports betting must be used for Property Tax reductions for South Dakota residents. It would be in our constitution and future legislatures wouldn’t be able to allocate that money away from property tax reductions like we have seen in the past with other revenue sources.
