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Groton Daily Independent
Tuesday, March 13, 2018 ~ Vol. 25 - No. 242 ~ 12 of 46
News from the
Independent redistricting initiative falls short of ballot
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — The campaign for a proposed constitutional amendment that would have taken control of redistricting from state legislators and given it to an independent commission didn’t submit enough valid signatures to put the measure before November voters, South Dakota’s chief elections of- cial said Monday.
Secretary of State Shantel Krebs’ of ce said in a statement that a random sampling of signatures col- lected by Citizens for Fair Elections found that the group turned in about 25,300 valid signatures, not the nearly the 28,000 needed for the proposed constitutional amendment to go on the general election ballot.
Krebs said supporters submitted roughly 34,000 signatures total, but only 74 percent were found to be valid. The rejection could be challenged in court.
The amendment called for switching control of the legislative redistricting process from legislators to an independent commission of nine people, with no more than three from any one political party. It mirrored an amendment that voters rejected in the 2016 election.
Charles Parkinson, chairman of Citizens for Fair Elections, said the group will discuss its options, but that the chances of a court challenge are “slim.”
Redistricting is the process of redrawing electoral district boundaries every 10 years to account for popu- lation changes. When the process is carried out by elected of cials, it often sparks lawsuits and claims of gerrymandering — attempting to draw the districts for political advantage.
Republicans control every statewide of ce and hold supermajorities in the state Legislature.
“I would be much more comfortable if a group that was not politically lopsided was making those deci- sions,” said Parkinson, a Republican. “What is the problem with a multi-partisan approach to this?”
The South Dakota Republican Party opposed the unsuccessful 2016 amendment. GOP Sen. Jim Bolin has said the proposal would give away power to nonelected of cials to decide on something the Legislature did well in 2011.
Boy cited for setting Sioux Falls playground on re
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Sioux Falls police say a 10-year-old boy is accused of arson after allegedly setting re to an apartment playground.
Crews were called Sunday night to the re at a private playground on the grounds of Autumn Park Apartments.
A police spokesman says an investigation found the re began with the boy playing with a lighter and a piece of paper. The re then spread to the rest of the playground.
The playground had just been installed in December and cost $65,000.
The Argus Leader reports the child was cited for second-degree arson and intentional damage to property.
Law governing use of lakes on private land made permanent
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — Gov. Dennis Daugaard has signed a bill to make permanent an expiring law that governs the use of lakes on private land for recreation.
The Republican governor initially pushed the Legislature during the 2018 session to move the law’s June expiration to 2021, but lawmakers instead sent him a bill that removed the sunset. He wrote in a recent column that the water rules are working.
“Although access to public waters will always be an issue, after twenty years we have nally brought certainty and found an answer that is working for landowners and sportsmen,” said Daugaard, who signed the permanent extension into law on Friday.
The new rules were the product of a June special legislative session on so-called nonmeandered waters.