SIOUX FALLS, S.D.(Argus Leader)- A new South Dakota property rights group wants to put a carbon dioxide pipeline-related bill signed by Gov. Kristi Noem before voters this November.
South Dakota Property Rights and Local Control Alliance, which calls itself “an alliance of local citizens, property owners, and leaders at the county, township, and state levels,” announced its formation Friday.
The newly-formed group is opposed to South Dakota Senate Bill 201, a bill that allows counties to impose a $1 per linear foot annual surcharge on pipelines and establishes a “Landowner Bill of Rights.”
The bill comes with a trade-off — one much maligned by opponents of the bill — in that permitted pipeline projects can supersede or preempt local county or municipal zoning, building and safety ordinances.
Rick Bonander, a member of the alliance, told the Argus Leader the group plans to initiate a referendum on SB 201, with the ultimate goal of repealing SB 201.
“The nice thing about South Dakota is we can use a referendum and the people can vote to decide how they want to be ruled,” Bonander said. “If they want authoritarian rule or if they want to have democratic rule — It should be up to the citizens, what they want.”
Bonander said the exact language of a potential referendum question is still to be determined. The group also has to collect 17,508 petition signatures by May 7 to pose the question before voters this November election.
“I don’t think we’ll have a problem meeting that,” said Bonander, a supervisor on the Minnehaha Conservation District Board of Supervisors. “I think that we’ll be in good shape.”
This announcement comes after 21 legislators from the South Dakota House of Representatives and four state senators filed a letter of dissent and protest against SB 201 on March 6 and March 7.
Their complaints against the bill includes the arguments that SB 201 violates South Dakota Constitution Article III, which states the legislature is prohibited from enacting laws that “regulating county and township affairs.” These lawmakers also argue the bill violates the state’s “single-subject rule,” which prohibits laws from including more than one subject in its title.
Some counties in eastern South Dakota have implemented setback ordinances, or minimum distances a liquid pipeline must maintain from residences and other structures. These vary from county-to-county and range from 300 feet to more than 1,000 feet.
However, county setback ordinances will no longer apply to permitted pipeline projects once the SB 201 takes effect July 1, unless the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission requires pipeline developers to abide by an ordinance as a condition of their permit.