LETTER | Senate Bill 201 is not constitutional
The legal flaw of Senate Bill 201 should be enough for the law to be thrown out. It covers multiple unrelated topics, violating a state law that mandates a single, clearly stated subject per law.
SB 201 as entitled states “(1) An act to provide new statutory requirements for regulating linear transmission facilities, (2) to allow counties to impose a surcharge on certain pipeline companies, and (3) to establish a landowner bill of rights.”
The law violated is South Dakota Constitution, Article 3:21 which states, “One subject expressed in title. No law shall embrace more than one subject, which shall be expressed in its title.” Also a communique of Dissent and Protest Passage of SB 201 was filed and signed in the Legislature and the Senate regarding the illegality of SB 201.
SB 201 has clarity issues. It does not guarantee the public will ever see plume study models and other safety dates about CO2 pipelines. What are they hiding? After Navigator Heartland Greenway had its permit denied by the Public Utilities Commission last year, the company released its plume study model, which I assure anyone is watered down at best, but should be quite alarming to anyone who reads it.
SB 201 does not protect landowners from eminent domain for private gain. Let’s remember ALL property owners in this equation. This bill doesn’t state “landowners in rural areas only.” If passed, this bill allows any company to use any land, urban or rural. Heads up on wind towers and solar panels and goodness knows what else is coming down the road, perhaps hydrogen pipelines.
This pipeline is being built on the backs of the taxpayers. As if our country isn’t in enough debt, let’s throw out billions of dollars, to billionaires, using 45Q tax credit dollars. If there weren’t tax incentives, there would be no pipeline.
Ethanol plants aren’t going anywhere and there is no guarantee that corn prices will skyrocket if the pipeline is built. In fact the ethanol industry’s own lobbyists in Washington have said, “The ethanol industry isn’t going anywhere,” stated David Hallberg, an ethanol lobbyist and founder of Renewable Fuels Association. “They should stop saying that.” Fellow ethanol lobbyist Doug Durante said the industry is aware of how electric vehicles and greater fuel efficiency will eat into demand for ethanol, but it has another pathway for keeping demand up. “If the pipeline can add some value, that’s great, but we’ve also got an opportunity right now,” Durante said. “And its higher blends.” This is from an article in South Dakota Searchlight by Joshua Haiar, Dec, 21, 2023.
There isn’t one pipeline opponent, that I’ve heard of, that is against ethanol. There are farmers that are opposed to the pipeline that are large stakeholders in ethanol plants. Also, we keep hearing about all of the people that are for the pipeline. If this is true, why aren’t they having rallies at the Capitol and getting signatures to keep SB 201 OFF of the ballot?
In fact, ethanol plants have been paying employees to attend hearings in Pierre so it “appears” they have support. Speaking of being paid, perhaps the public needs to hear that hundreds of South Dakotans have had to hire a lawyer and have had monthly payments for the last two years to save their land that is already protected by our Constitution.
Anyone who wants this pipeline, please call Summit Carbon Solutions, give them your address and they can bury it on your property, 50 feet from your home, your livestock, your school, your church.
The opposition to the pipeline says, “Go ahead, build your pipeline, just give landowners the respect they deserve and uphold our constitutional laws that grant us the right to do what we want on our property.”
One of the very states that is causing the push on our ethanol plants to produce low carbon ethanol, California, has a moratorium on CO2 pipelines in their state. There’s a concept to ponder.
No one is talking about water usage or electrical grid issues for these projects. The proposed GEVO plant in Lake Preston, has a required water usage of 300 million gallons annually. Reference Bleeding Heartland, by Nancy Dugan, Feb. 6, 2024. We’ve heard estimates of 14-20 million gallons of water annually at each ethanol site that has a CO2 pipeline.
If anyone would like to reference voting records on landowner protection bills, feel free to check it out online at sdlegislature.com. Look up the candidates you are voting for, specifically SB 201. Get informed before you vote!
Let’s also ask the candidates of District 5, District 4, heck all of the districts, how much of their campaign funding is from special interest groups, individuals and PAC’s (Political Action Committee) who will benefit from the CO2 pipeline. This information is available on the South Daktoa Secretary of State website at sdsos.gov.
Many of these PAC’s have donors like Bruce Rastetter, an Iowan who owns Summit Carbon Solutions and May, Adam’s, Gerdes & Thompson, a law firm that represents Summit. The list goes on and on of contributions by those that will benefit from our tax dollars using the 45Q tax credits.
Summit Carbon Solutions had a copious amount of lobbyists at this last session pushing for SB 201 to get passed. Why would a company who is trying to take people’s land be all in on a bill that “protects landowners rights?” It’s absolutely ludicrous and insulting to the people of our great state.
In summary, for 30 years we had plans to build a home and live peacefully on our property. This American dream was stolen from us. We found out during testimony in a senate hearing that the pipeline had been moved off of our land and on to our neighbor’s. How the senator who knew this before we did is beyond us. It’s still 500 some feet from grandpa’s house. We don’t want this for our neighbors either. That’s not how we treat neighbors in South Dakota. So anyone who is for this pipeline, Summit, ethanol plants, farmers, city dwellers, please contemplate how you would feel having your home taken from you so someone else can get a paycheck.
Does this sound like America?
Rick and Wendy Schulz
Watertown
It is worse than we think.
The money people are now trying a kinder and gentler approach. It is probably working.
Be informed.
Sign the petition to refer this horrible bill.
Vote for legislators who are not on the corporate payroll.
Spot on, Rick and Wendy. Thank you!
SD Voters have big decisions to make on June 4th. Voters will be well served to do their own research and be informed. The trajectory of our state, our freedoms, and our rights depend on it.