Hello from Pierre, and it’s good to visit with everyone again. The Legislative Session is officially underway, and we’re back to work. I’ll begin by reminding everyone of my responsibilities this year as I serve as your Representative. I currently serve as the Assistant Majority Leader for the House of Representatives, Chair of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, Vice Chair of the State Affairs Committee, a member of the Legislative Rules Committee, and Chair of the House Government Operations and Audit Committee. As you can imagine, these roles keep me very busy, along with reading bills and attending many meetings.

Speaking of keeping things organized, I’ve been fortunate to have Tristen Petrik from Platte serving as my Intern this Session. I sponsored Tristen two years ago as a Page, and I had a feeling he would be back because he enjoyed the experience so much. Although we’re just getting started, he has already proven to be very helpful, eager to work hard, and intelligent. He helps keep me on schedule, which is no small task, and I look forward to working with him throughout the Session.

One of the best parts of this job is working with young people. That includes the first group of Pages who just finished their two-week shift, along with the Interns working for other members of Leadership. Whenever I think about the future, I reflect on the many young people I’ve had the chance to work with over the past six years. They give me confidence that we’ll have strong leaders for years to come.

I don’t usually write a column during the first week of Session because not much happens beyond speeches and meetings. During week one, the Governor delivered the State of the State address, along with the State of the Judiciary and the State of the Tribes. We also spent long days in meetings, sometimes six or seven in a single day, organizing how we’ll operate as a Caucus.

Now we’re into week two. Legislative Research Counsel has informed us that more than 1,000 bills have been drafted. Some will be pulled by sponsors, so I expect about 600 to 650 bills to move through committees. Roughly a third will die in committee, and the rest will advance to the House or Senate floor. Committees are working hard, and it’s my job to make sure we stay on pace and meet our crossover deadlines.

I’ve introduced two bills this Session. HB 1106 would allow county commissioners to choose one-, two-, or three-year appointments for county extension board members. Counties would not be required to make changes; this simply provides flexibility.

The second bill, HB 1105, is a bipartisan effort with Representative Erik Muckey addressing the closure of nursing homes in smaller communities. Facilities in Tripp and Corsica were shut down and sold with non-compete clauses, preventing communities from reopening them. I believe this practice is unacceptable and disrespects our elderly citizens and their families. Senator Tom Pischke has agreed to sponsor the bill in the Senate if it advances.

Finally, HJR 5001 passed out of State Affairs. It would define public versus private use and, if passed, go to the voters as a ballot measure. I support it as a way to protect property rights.

That’s it for this week. Stay warm, and feel free to contact me at 605-680-0304 or by email at Marty.Overweg@sdlegislature. gov. Thank you for your continued