Excerpts From Recent South Dakota Editorials

Editors: Please note that The Associated Press welcomes editorial contributions from members for the weekly Editorial Roundup. Three editorials are selected every week. Contributions can be made by email at [email protected].

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Rapid City Journal, Rapid City, Feb. 15, 2015

Public notices need to remain in print

It is difficult to understand why some lawmakers are determined to clear the way so local governments no longer have to publish minutes and other public notices in local newspapers of record.

But in what is becoming an annual proposal, lawmakers that in this session included Rapid City legislators Kristin Conzet, Dan Dryden, Brian Gosch, Phil Jensen and Craig Tiezen co-sponsored a bill to do just that. Supporters of House Bill 1167 included the South Dakota Municipal League, the Associated School Boards, and the South Dakota Association of County Officials.

Fortunately, the House Local Government Committee voted Thursday to kill the measure on a 11-2 vote. Rep. Scott Craig of Rapid City was among those who voted against the measure.

If the Legislature had approved the bill and the governor signed it, the measure would have allowed city councils, county commissions, school boards and other governmental entities to post public notices on a website of their choosing where they would manage the content.

The bill was opposed by the South Dakota Newspaper Association, which argued it would lead to reduced public oversight of government as printed legal notices increase accountability over elected officials while forming a permanent historic record of government actions.

The problems with the defeated measure are numerous and obvious.

First, having a government entity manage information that is designed to shine light on its own activities is problematic. As we have seen in South Dakota and across the nation, there now is less trust in government and actions like this likely would not lead to an increased faith in our elected leaders.

Secondly, a fair number of South Dakotans don’t have computers or even Internet access in some cases. The bill attempted to address this by requiring that a jurisdiction designate a local library with free internet access so local residents could drive — in some cases long distances — to view the information that used to be delivered or mailed to their homes.

Finally, just because minutes are posted on a website doesn’t mean they are readily accessible or available in a timely manner. Websites can be complicated and convoluted and if you are unable to find something on the website who are you going to call for help? Some of the more rural western counties have small staffs and their current websites have precious little information.

Newspapers have been publishing public notices and minutes from meetings for decades and it has worked well for the public and especially those who keep a close eye on our elected officials. It is best to continue the practice and maintain the public’s trust.

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Aberdeen American News, Aberdeen, Feb. 15, 2015

While imperfect, expanded definition of veteran has merit

A proposal that would broaden how South Dakota defines a veteran has been met with vitriol by some with military experience, yet received resounding support in the state House of Representatives.

House Bill 1179 was approved 63-4 last week, a tally so shocking that gasps could be heard in the Capitol chamber after the vote, according to American News correspondent Bob Mercer.

Current state law defines a veteran as someone who has served “continuous federalized active military duty for a period of at least 90 days for reasons other than training.”

In other words, someone who’s been deployed in a war zone for at least that long.

The change in definition would remove that requirement, which would lead to extra benefits for 20,000 to 25,000 people — Reserves and National Guard — who have served in the armed forces reserves or National Guard.

The extra perks would include:

— The ability to purchase special veteran license plates.

— That their survivors could apply for $100 burial assistance available to low-income veterans.

— Access to the State Veterans Home in Hot Springs.

— Qualification for the automatic interviews granted to veterans who apply and qualify for jobs in state government and in counties and cities that offer the preference.

Those seem like modest benefits for the men and women who are willing to defend our country, in addition to having non-military careers.

It’s true that the change could lead to an instance in which a veteran who has never been called into lengthy military duty procures a spot at the veterans home instead of one who has endured multiple, extended deployments. In this day and age, though, that seems unlikely. Those joining the Reserves or National Guard nowadays have to almost expect to be deployed. Our Aberdeen-area Guard and Reserve units have seen multiple deployments since 9/11.

And Guard and Reserve units are critical supplements to our country’s regular military forces.

It’s hard to imagine a scenario where the draft would ever be enacted again. The nature of war has changed and so has the public’s attitude toward involuntary military service. These people volunteered, and represent the numbers that might have been found using a draft in past years.

The Senate has yet to approve the veterans measure. It would also need backing from Gov. Dennis Daugaard, who has indicated he would sign the bill.

Rep. Dan Kaiser, R-Aberdeen, has been a vocal opponent of the proposal. An Aberdeen police officer and an Iraq War veteran, he feels the change would diminish the meaning of the word veteran. Kaiser is to be commended for his service and we understand his perspective, but we respectfully disagree.

While imperfect, we support the expanded definition of veteran. It seems like a small price to pay for those who are willing to defend and look out for the best interests of the nation.

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The Public Opinion, Watertown, Feb. 16, 2015

It can’t happen here? Oh, yes it can

Last week, Jeffrey DeZeeuw walked into Sioux Steel’s ProTec engineering facility in Lennox and shot two people, assaulting a third. Jon Richter, 45, died of his wounds on the scene. Co-worker Kathy Steever, 46, was injured and flown to a hospital. Another Sioux Steel employee, Brian Roesler, 45, who attempted to subdue DeZeeuw, was struck in the head and injured. His actions, authorities say, may have saved other lives. DeZeeuw later committed suicide.

Crimes like this in South Dakota, especially in a small town like Lennox, are virtually unheard of. When we think of workplace violence, school shootings, abductions and other senseless acts of violence we associate them with anyplace but here. But they can, and do, happen here. What happened last week in Lennox was an all too real reminder.

Just because we’re a small, mostly rural state, doesn’t mean we are immune from the problems that other states and communities experience. People here are exposed to the same problems, stresses and troubles people elsewhere are. Fortunately, we don’t often see such extreme reactions to them like we did last week in Lennox.

What shouldn’t be overlooked, though, is how law enforcement, first responders, school officials and others in positions of authority responded in Lennox. All had plans in place to deal with extreme situations like this and all implemented those plans as soon as they received word about what was happening. We like to think just about every community in the state would have a similar response if a similar situation happened there.

We often take the preparations that are needed to respond quickly to situations like the one in Lennox for granted. When schools hold practice lockdowns or emergency drills some may scoff. They may feel they’re a waste of time because things that make them necessary don’t happen here. But as we found out last week they do.

And when police, SWAT or other law enforcement units train for possible situations where their services may be required, some may think that’s just an excuse to make them feel important or look good. It’s not. There are times those skills and people are needed, whether they’re special units or just well-trained every day law enforcement.

And then there are the ambulance crews, EMTs, hospital people, communications people and many others who are called into action when things like what happened last week arise. They, too, all have roles to play and have been well trained as to what they are.

As infrequent as it is when something like what happened last week in Lennox happens, think about how frequently we need the people who respond, in one form or another, to situations like that. Whether it’s law enforcement, medical, school or anyone else, we should be grateful for each and every one of them and the time and effort they put in to be able to do what they do. Without their dedication and commitment to their communities, emergency situations could be far worse than they are.

It’s easy to ignore or take for granted the efforts of those who respond in emergency situations. We don’t see the countless hours they spend training and planning to handle emergency situations of all types. That training and planning is repeated so often that when an emergency situation arises their responses are almost second nature. They know what can happen even if there’s only a remote chance that it may.

Too many of us think that because we live in South Dakota, a small state with a low crime rate, that we’re immune to the problems that we see all too often happening in other communities across the country. It can’t happen here? Yeah, it can and thank God we have people ready to respond if it does.