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budgets for schools and Medicaid under this proposal. That is just bad management.
• There also is no guarantee that when schools get this extra money from the added penny sales tax, that they will spend it on teacher salaries and needed programs. There is nothing that prevents schools from putting the cash into reserves.
• We think the best solution for schools is a tool they already can use -- the opt-out. School boards have the authority to ask local taxpayers to pay more for their local programs by opting out of the state property tax freeze. That leaves the decision where it should be, at the local level.
• As for the tax bumping up money for health care, we don't see how this will save nursing homes, which are the most vulnerable when it comes to getting reimbursed for Medicaid patients. With or without an added tax, Medicaid patients can't be denied health care. The question is how much providers will receive in reimbursements.
• Because the structure of IM15 is flawed, we support a "no" vote at the polls. Then lawmakers and others can get to work to properly pay for education and Medicaid in South Dakota.
• ___
• The Daily Republic, Mitchell. Nov. 1, 2012
• Noem not perfect, but has done well
• The forthcoming election to determine South Dakota's member of the U.S. House of Representatives seems to hinge on a few basic issues:
• Has the incumbent, Republican Kristi Noem, been working on behalf of South Dakota? Or has she been slacking at our expense, as her challenger, Democrat Matt Varilek, claims?
• Has Noem been a voice for South Dakota's agriculture community? Or has she failed to speak up about key farm issues and the farm bill itself during her two years in Washington, as Varilek contends?
• And does Varilek too closely mirror the political ideals and policies of President Barack Obama, as Noem contends?
• This has become a nasty campaign, and honestly, we care very little about claims that Noem seemingly toys with her cellphone during committee meetings or that Varilek has hosted parties that revolve around corndogs and alcohol.
• We do not feel that Noem has made any significant mistakes during her first two years in Congress, and therefore we today give her our support.
• She has the background we are seeking in our elected leaders -- she is a lifelong rancher, came up through the ranks of the South Dakota Legislature and quickly rose to a leadership position in the U.S. House.

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