Last updated on 2013.07.22
Sibby notes with approval, as do I, House Minority Leader Bernie Hunhoff's critique of South Dakota's faux frugality. Rep. Hunhoff says Governor Dennis Daugaard is making undue ado over his administration's ability to fulfill the same legal obligation to balance the state budget that previous Governors and Legislatures have done without fail 122 consecutive times before. Rep. Hunhoff says the Governor isn't saving money; he's cheating his kids:
Frugality is a virtue. But we've taken it to the extreme in South Dakota. At some point it becomes a vice — like a well-to-do father who won't buy shoes for his kids [Rep. Bernie Hunhoff, "Frugality as a Vice: State Surplus Too Much of a Good Thing," Mitchell Daily Republic, 2012.07.24].
Some "frugal" dads take their kids' shoe money to the poker table. Governor Daugaard takes our kids' money to the golf course. Rep. Hunhoff finds Pierre's favors to corporate golfing buddies wasteful:
Despite a guise of frugality, the current administration has started a litany of new programs — many of them for big corporations. One example is the Manpower program that will spend $5 million to help a few companies recruit workers from out-of-state. That's what often happens with exorbitant surpluses: they are reclassified as one-time monies and then spent in areas that are low priority, if necessary at all. Thus, frugality turns into waste [Hunhoff, 2012.07.24].
Sibby, of course, finds the surplus just another globalist trick. But don't let that distract you from Governor Daugaard's awful fiscal priorities. From day one of his administration, Governor Daugaard has said we spend too much on education and too little on corporate welfare. Those priorities are seriously out of whack.
Ya. I can hear it now ...
Governor Daugaard: "We spend too much on education and too little on corporate welfare."
Audience: "BoooooooOOOOOOoooooOOOOOO!"
Wish I'd been a fly on the wall for that one.
Not all of the action was on the golf course:
http://www.yankton.net/articles/2012/07/27/community/doc501210692bf9c445672001.txt
Much of the activity of the golf classic occurred around conference tables rather than on the golf course.
“I’ve been very pleasantly surprised. Within the past couple days, we’ve had seven or eight orchestrated, formal meetings,†Daugaard said.
It's really too bad that you only see the bad in what the governor does.
Michael, the Governor has a power press machine to make sure everyone hears the good. I strive to provide equal time to the other side.
I love to golf and play several times in the summer months. Why did I not get invited?
The South Dakota budget is balanced. The federal budget is not.
Wayne, either you don't have a sufficiently amazing business plan... or you don't have sufficient campaign donation potential.
Michael, if Daugaard were running against Obama, that might be a relevant point. Otherwise, it has nothing to do with the SDGOP's neglect of education.
I say vote for giving bonuses to good teachers. They deserve them. Here in South Dakota we reward those who excel and that should go for teachers too. Why doesn't Mr. Hunoff want you to get more money Mr. H?
I agree the Governor deserves more praise. After all, he's one of the best Machiavellian politicians that I have ever seen.
LK, the kids do need object lessons to put our LD values and philosophies into perspective.
Grudz, check out this article on merit pay. If you want even a chance of the plan working, you have to give everyone a raise, then threaten to penalize the teachers who underperform. How do you like that plan?
I think giving people a raise and then taking it away from the slothish is fine. But we must document how many slothish are to be punished, and we must not let the Unions cry and whine until we let the slothish keep their raises.
But I am for that idea. It seems to indicate even more that we should get rid of that job-for-life stuff teachers get in their contracts. Yes, I am for that idea.
(Dang it, Grudz, there is no job-for-life language in any SD K-12 teacher's contract!)
So will you support ponying up the cash to raise every South Dakota teacher's salary $10,000 and face the possibility that, so motivated by the fear of losing that raise, every teacher in the state might work hard enough to keep it?
Cory, there is a very important point to be made: the feds can't make any decisions while our state can. We need tough people to make the tough choices in Washington. All we have is gridlock because if we have any success the other party might be able to take credit for it. There is more than enough blame to go around. Pierre is not the enemy.
Yah, Michael and remember why our state can balance its budget. Just remember that our state gets more in federal funds than it puts in. That's a fact and states like California continue to get less from what they put in. So, I wouldn't brag too much...actually I would not brag at all about our so called "balanced budgets." When we can actually balance a state budget without big federal funds (welfare for the State of South Dakota) then, then maybe you can brag. But, until then, I don't want it hear it because it's: BS.
In fact, when people actually begin to make these "tough decisions" as Michael puts it, watch out South Dakota because that means you are going to have to begin to foot the bill instead of the Federal Government. That means, yep: higher local property taxes. There is the reality of what the Conservatives in SD better be prepared for.
Might be wrong, but didn't the Govenor say he was putting back the 50 million dollar surplus cause he thought that might be what Washington was going to cut from state aid. If I am correct it appears that they are already getting ready for those cuts. Sad thing is don't think taxes are going up in South Dakota, think more likely to see teachers and government workers(at all levels) losing jobs and/or almost permanet pay freezes. Have more sympathy for State workers than anyone else, they have been beat around the head for quite a few years, admit they got a break this year. Problem is think before it is done the cuts are gonna be a whole lot more than 50 million dollars. Hope not
This surplus is the result of one thing: Better than expected crop yields and prices plus better than expected revenue from the bank franchise tax.
To criticize the Governor for not forecasting what neither the banks or farmers were projecting is insane. When we watch crops burn up this year, I will be shocked if we don't miss this year's projections for revenue and next year will be especially tough, in particular for those who didn't have crop insurance.
I like Bernie as a person and think he is a very good legislator (even when we disagree he is usually logical) but to compare not spending unexpected money to a vice is crazy.
Joseph, I haven't heard that contention from the Governor... but then I haven't read everything he's said on the topic. Anyone else hear that our big surplus has anything to do with bracing for the Noem-Ryan budget?
All you guys have missed the most important point:
The surplus was $144 million and only $48 million went into reserves. What happened to the rest?
Cory I am going to chime in with an idea many tried forcing down our liberal throats years ago when gambling started in SD. Governor Janklow had many, including me try getting the State of SD to invest our revenues from all games of chance in an irrevocable trust fund. Had we done that it would now be worth over one billion dollars sending to the general fund more than we obtain from the games every year. Give or take $100 million every year. If we loosened the Property Tax Reduction hold on just 5% every year and put that into an irrevocable trust fund we would have $50 million in ten years. Minus the rate of inflation send all the rest of the interest income out to K-12 teachers every year in quarterly payments circumnavigating school boards honor to their voters to be as conservative as possible with their money. (Which usually means not putting as much as needed into the base salary.) The amount would fluctuate somewhat but what I suspect we would see is the base salary increasing every year coming from a fund which the public was sold as going to education at its onslaught. We would see an increase in teacher applications which in turn would increase the overall skill level of our teaching base in SD and education would improve with simple supply and demand strategy. Teachers win, kids win, school districts win, tax payers win, and legislators/politicians win.
Not to quibble, Troy, but that's two things. And yes, I agree with you. The surplus is a surprize. I also like Charlie's trust fund idea. Not bad for an idiot tool of Marx, huh? Or are we ALL just a bunch of pinkos?
Weren't some of our funds such as tobacco settlement securitized under Gov Rounds Charlie?
Les I believe they were put into trust in the fund portfolio which contributes to the general fund plus other expenses. (5-12-48--60) The Cement Plant sale proceeds were put into trust with an automatic payment schedule to the general fund which will be on the ballot this November allowing a change in statute constitutionality. If the automatic payments continue as written the fund will go broke and we will have sold an asset without any long term benefit to the State of SD. They need to be lowered until the fund regains full value and I am hoping the people of SD think so and vote yes to change that.