Immediate Release: Wednesday, January 27, 2016
Contact: Michael Ewald, Communications Director, (605) 271-5405, press@sddp.org
GOP demands “big government” collect your pee, police bathrooms
Sioux Falls, SD (January 27, 2016)-
The South Dakota Democratic Party expressed concern regarding several pieces of legislation introduced in the 91st Legislative Session.
“The party of ‘small government’ wants to collect your pee and police your bathroom. To be honest, the fixation on these issues— as opposed to teacher pay, government ethics, or Medicaid expansion— is strange.” South Dakota Democratic Party Executive Director Suzanne Jones Pranger said before continuing, “It’s mind boggling when you consider the proponents of these measures are nowhere when we seek investigation into scandals that have cost South Dakota taxpayers millions of dollars and several lives.”
House Bill 1008 would require transgender students use separate facilities than that of the gender with which they identify and would require these students submit a request to school administrators for accommodation in a separate facility.
“It’s a ‘big government’ solution for a problem that doesn’t exist. It sends a damaging signal to transgender students they aren’t welcome,” said Communications Director Michael Ewald.
Advocates for transgender rights warn that those who identify with a gender other than their biological sex at birth are at a substantially higher risk of bullying. Studies show nearly 41% of transgender persons will attempt suicide in their lifetime.
“Separate but equal bathrooms aren’t going to help students feel comfortable in their educational environment. There are real costs to this imagined issue,” Ewald said.
Another piece of legislation, House Bill 1076, would require welfare recipients submit to drug tests in order to receive SNAP benefits.
“This proposal is proven to be a waste of time and resources. The attitude that ’these people are poor, so they must be on drugs’ is superficial and not based in factual analysis.” Jones Pranger said.
Democrats point out that all but one state with active welfare testing programs found violation rates less than 1% positive in 2015.
For example, Tennessee had 16,017 eligible applicants that could be tested under their state program— only 37 tested positive for drug use. In Missouri, 38,970 were eligible to be tested— only 48 tested positive.
Democrats are also concerned with the universal nature of the testing program which they warn leaves the state open to Constitutional challenges.
“This legislation is yet another example of the Republican controlled Legislature proposing policies that may be challenged in court on Constitutional grounds— costing taxpayers even more money than would already be expended to administer the policy,” concluded Jones Pranger.
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