Monthly Archives: March 2011

The 86th South Dakota Legislative Session has drawn to a close. The session saw a great deal of hard work by legislators, staffers, interns, and pages. We all worked together to deliver results for our state through legislation aimed at creating jobs and fixing the structural deficit, without raising taxes. … Read Article →

Week nine began with an education committee meeting Monday morning on Native American education; its potential, opportunities, and obstacles.  Stacy Phelps gave us an excellent overview of issues concerning education on our nine reservations in South Dakota. Later Monday morning, our commerce and energy committee listened to an overview on … Read Article →

Greetings from Pierre:  We passed the final budget today.  Here are some highlights from the final bill passed by a 27 to 8 vote in the Senate:  K-12 education funding � Senate Bill 152 primed by Sen. Rhoden and co-sponsored by myself provided for school fiscal year 2012 is $4,389.95.  … Read Article →

South Dakota�s annual mountain lion killing season ended Feb. 21. Of the 47 cougars killed (which exceeded the established limit of 45), 26 were female and 21 male. Of the killed, five were ages 5 to 6 months, four of which were females weighing as little as 33 lbs. No … Read Article →

Nestle [vb] – to settle snugly or comfortably as if in a nest, to press closely or affectionately The other day, while watching my three Dachshunds wrap themselves around each other, winding into one large ball of fur with three heads, six eyes and twelve legs, I pondered how reassuring … Read Article →

When you talk to the average person about their prayer life, most people say they pray regularly.  Many of these same people are not sure if God really exists or that their prayers are doing them any good.  Prayer has become synonymous with good feelings, wishes, and good will. I�ve … Read Article →