2025 Session - Week 4

Good Friday morning District 4!

This week in Pierre, the pace picked up significantly for bills on the House floor. Several were “clean-up” language agency bills. We continue to deal with bills creating law targeting very specific enterprises. This concerns me as the overall impact of these targeted bills chases entrepreneurs and new enterprise away. Some will ask “where will the people come from?” It’s been my experience that people follow good ideas, and enterprising people attract the best. We need to support each other, or at the very least not pass legislation in a rushed manner to cripple ideas. Imagine putting the heel to a potential business that could provide good jobs for our best and brightest. The further impact is our kids keep leaving the state and on to greener pastures. Our best resource, our own children, chased out by chilling legislation. If you have an idea that may offend someone the message we give them is, move along, we’re closed to innovation and new ideas. And if you manage to catch a little traction, well, we’ll pass some legislation changing the rules mid-way into your enterprise and show you the door, the way to your car, and the highway out. It’s no wonder states that are open for business are getting a lot of our best.

We’ll be dealing with the prison issue soon. We need to change the status quo. I’ve heard, very loudly, from people opposed to a new prison. Some are opposed to any change, some are opposed to the particular new prison, and some are opposed to various alternative plans that fall between these two. I believe the administration has a good plan, we own the land, and we need the facility. I’d like to hear from you and the thoughts of District 4 regarding the prison.

I do appreciate and believe in the legislative process, and respect it more now than before. Believe it or not, the process accomplishes much that is good and necessary.

There are several cracker barrels in the near future. Watch the paper for dates and times! I look forward to hearing from you and discussing issues important to you.

All the best,

Kent Roe

South Dakota District 4 House of Representatives

Kent.Roe@SDLegislature.gov

X:  Kent Roe@OxfordthomasRoe