Legislative Update with Jay Kruse

You can still join us in Pierre for SD Credit Union Legislative Day. Follow bills in both states that could affect credit unions on our bill-tracking website page. 

by Jay Kruse, Chief Advocacy Officer

Happy Thursday morning! Legislative sessions in North and South Dakota are now in full swing as the deadline for the introduction of bills quickly approaches in both states. Today is legislative day (LD) 7 in SD, with the final day to introduce bills being LD 15 (Feb 1), and in ND it is LD 11, with the final day to introduce bills in the Senate January 23. The North Dakota deadline for introducing bills in the House was yesterday. I have included links to session calendars for each state below.

North Dakota Session Calendar
South Dakota Session Calendar

As of this morning, a whopping 902 bills and resolutions have been introduced in North Dakota, which breaks down to 547 in the House and 355 in the Senate. South Dakota legislators convene ever year and have a little bit of a smaller workload. There have been a total of 180 bills and resolutions introduced so far this session; 102 in the House and 78 in the Senate.  

We are busy reviewing each bill as they are introduced and adding any that will affect credit unions and credit union members to our industry specific bill tracking list. This list includes legislative text, bill summaries, and the Government Affairs Committees (GACs) position on each bill in addition to updates detailing recent committee and floor action. I highly encourage all of you to take a quick peak at our tracking list at least once a week to stay informed with all the legislation affecting credit unions in the Dakotas this session. 

Find our Bill Tracking List here: https://www.dakcu.org/bill-tracking.html

Be sure to select your state in the drop down. Next week we will take a deeper dive into some the bills including on our tracking list, so be sure to check back in next Thursday.

Still Time to Register for South Dakota Credit Union Legislative Day
If you have been on the fence, there is still time to register for our South Dakota Credit Union Legislative Day which is taking place next Wednesday, January 25 in Pierre at the Ramkota Hotel and Conference Center. We have a full day of credit union advocacy planned, culminating with our annual Legislative Social. It’s very important to have a large group of credit union professionals joining us for this valuable event which annually welcomes upwards of 70+ legislators from all across the state.

Agenda
11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. - SD GAC Meeting
          Invitation Only/Lunch Provided - Ramkota Hotel & Convention Center
1:30 p.m. - Meet at the Capitol
          Photo/CUs Recognized in the Legislative Chambers
3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. - CU Roundtable
          Join us to receive an industry update and hear from guest speakers as they discuss issues affecting South Dakota credit unions. Ramkota Hotel & Convention Center
5:30 p.m. too 7:30 p.m. - Legislative Social 
          Ramkota Hotel & Convention Center

As always, this is a FREE event for DakCU members, but we do ask you kindly register in advance so we can plan accordingly. Don't hesitate to contact me if you have any advocacy related questions.