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South Dakota Tax Revenues for Grants Referendum, Referred Law 14 (2012)
| Tax Revenues for Grants Referendum | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Veto referendum |
| Origin | Citizens |
| Topic | Taxes |
| Status |  |
The Tax Revenues for Grants Referendum, also known as Referred Law 14, was on the November 6, 2012 ballot in South Dakota as a veto referendum. It was defeated.[1]
| A "yes" vote supported House Bill 1230, a law designed to transfer 22 percent of contractors’ excise tax revenues from the state general fund to the Large Project Development Fund for economic development projects. |
| A "no" vote opposed House Bill 1230. |
The petition drive to send the measure to a statewide vote was led by South Dakota Democratic Party chairman Ben Nesselhuf. Nesselhuf and other opponents opposed House Bill 1230. Thus, they advocated for a "no" vote on election day.
Election results
- See also: 2012 ballot measure election results
The following are official election results:
| South Dakota Referred Law 14 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
| No | 190,126 | 57.64% | ||
| Yes | 139,751 | 42.36% | ||
Official results via South Dakota Secretary of State.
Text of measure
The official ballot text read as follows:[2]
Title: An Act to establish the Large Project Development Fund.
Explanation: The referred law establishes the “Large Project Development Fund.” Beginning January 1, 2013, 22% of contractors’ excise tax revenues would be transferred from the state general fund to the Large Project Development Fund.
The South Dakota Board of Economic Development would use Large Project Development Fund monies to provide grants for the construction of large economic development projects within the state. To be eligible, a project must have a cost exceeding $5 million. Examples of eligible projects include laboratories and facilities for testing, manufacturing, power generation, power transmission, agricultural processing, and wind energy. Examples of ineligible projects include retail establishments; residential housing; and facilities for lodging, health care services and the raising or feeding of livestock.
A vote “Yes” is for the establishment of the Large Project Development Fund.
A vote “No” is against the referred law.
Support
Supporters of House Bill 1230 favored a "yes" vote on Referred Law 14.
- The South Dakota Chamber of Commerce released a newsletter in July 2012 stating their support for the law as it stood. The newsletter claimed that the law would secure significant investments in the state and that the concept behind the law had been used with success for the previous 15 years.[3]
- Governor Dennis Daugaard also advocated a "yes" vote on Referred Law 14.[4]
Opposition
Opponents of House Bill 1230 were in favor of a "no" vote on Referred Law 14.
- State Democrats opposed House Bill 1230 in the legislature and, following its approval, South Dakota Democratic Party chairman Ben Nesselhuf led the effort to refer the law to voters. According to Nesselhuf, the referred law expanded a law repealed by the legislature in 2010, one that, he argued, was repealed because it was broken.[5][6]
Path to the ballot
At least 15,855 valid signatures of South Dakota registered voters needed to be collected in order for the measure to be on the ballot.
According to state law, 5 percent of the signatures on the petitions should be verified, which equaled to approximately 1,150, depending on the total of signatures submitted. On June 27, 2011, supporters of the referendum turned in about 23,000 signatures to the South Dakota Secretary of State's office.[7]
Signature verification
On July 18, 2011, the South Dakota Secretary of State claimed that enough signatures were gathered, stating: “Petition circulators submitted approximately 22,883 signatures to refer the measure to a vote. According to state law and administrative rule, we drew a random sample of 1,145 signature lines to check for validation, which comprised the required audit of 5 percent of the signatures."[8]
Timeline
The following is a timeline of events surrounding the measure:
| Event | Date | Developments |
|---|---|---|
| Signatures submitted | Jun. 27, 2011 | Supporters turn in 23,000 signatures. |
| Certification | Jul. 18, 2011 | The South Dakota Secretary of State stated that the verification process was complete and that sufficient signatures were filed. |
See also
External links
Additional reading
Footnotes
- ↑ South Dakota Secretary of State, "2012 Election Returns," accessed January 17, 2019
- ↑ South Dakota Secretary of State, "Referred Law 14," accessed August 28, 2012
- ↑ South Dakota Chamber of Commerce and Industry, "Chamber Leading Effort to Pass Referred Law 14," July 2012
- ↑ Rapid City Journal, "Opponents say economic development bill an affront to voters," February 27, 2012
- ↑ South Dakota Democratic Party, "Daugaard Meets with Corporate Donors, We Give Him the Facts," July 2, 2012
- ↑ American News, "Business grant referendum hurting South Dakota, governor says," July 26, 2011
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedvote - ↑ Mitchell Republic, "Petitions OK'd in referral of state's business fund law," July 18, 2011 (dead link)
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