Lawmakers are back in Pierre Tuesday as they begin week two of the 2014 legislative session. The first week included updates from the Governor and the Chief Justice of South Dakota’s Supreme Court. Now legislators combine that information with their own goals as legislation gains traction in the Statehouse.
Some state legislative committees are addressing bills this second week of the session. More than 120 of them are filed. Others are hearing from state departments that apply to their committees. No panel hears from more leaders than Joint Appropriations members. These lawmakers focus their time on combing through the Governor’s proposed budget and discerning what’s necessary or important – and what isn’t.
For this session, committee chair State Senator Deb Peters has adjusted the Appropriations calendar. She’s made more time in the hot seat for people in charge of departments that use the most state dollars. This week, the Joint Appropriations agenda includes three full days of hearings from South Dakota’s Department of Education.
Sandra Waltman with the South Dakota Education Association follows all of the decisions lawmakers make regarding education, and she supports the move to hear more from the major department.
"I think it really is an opportunity for not only the members of the Appropriations and the legislators to learn more about these agencies, but I think it allows those of us who follow these policies to really have the opportunity to hear what the department is doing and how they’re spending their money," Waltman says. "I know, from my perspective, we’re always competing with House and Senate Education being at the same time, so you’re trying to split your time between what’s happening in those committees and the presentation by the department."
Members of those committees agree. State Representative Ray Ring is on the House Education Committee. That panel heard from Secretary Melody Schopp last week. But Ring says her extended time in front of Appropriations allows a more complete explanation of the department’s successes and challenges.
"I thought it was very informative, and she’s going to spend three days before the Appropriations Committee. She’ll be getting into a lot more of the weeds than she did with us," Ring says. "Yeah, I think it’s important for people to understand, for the citizens to understand what it is that we’re trying to accomplish with education, what we’ve done already – and we have accomplished some things."
The chair says there's a point to switching from the former method which sets aside one day for each state department.
"What we did this year is we put the high-dollar budget items, the highly utilized general fund dollars like the Department of Social Services and the Department of Education, at the top – right up front. That way people are still paying attention. Other committees have the opportunity to come in and listen more than they would later in session, so we’re trying to open up the Appropriations process, make it a little bit more public, make it a little bit more open," Chair State Senator Deb Peters says. "Obviously, everything we do is open up in Pierre as far as Appropriations, but this mechanism, while people have time me to pay attention to the appropriations process, we’re hoping to involve them in the process."
Peters says lawmakers – and people following the session – simply have more time at the beginning of the session as work begins.
