Category: House of Delegates
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
One of the items discussed during the 2013 House of Delegates was the need to expand the SDSEO's reach and presence. The decision was made during HOD to open an office in Sioux Falls during the interim session, with an evaluation of the results of the move to be made during the 2014 HOD. I will continue to work in Pierre for South Dakota Retirement System meetings, Board of Finance meetings, interim legislative hearings, and the entire legislative session.
The driving forces for opening an office in Sioux Falls are the need to push recruiting and chapter activity; working from Sioux Falls allows for me to make working with the SDSEO easier, as we have chapters in Brookings, Mitchell, Vermillion, Yankton, Springfield, Watertown, Sioux Falls, and Madison that have languished without access to the executive director. The hope is that more involvement with the executive director will lead to more recruiting and chapter activity, which are the lifeblood of the SDSEO. The fact of the matter is that the SDSEO needs to start adding members and getting more active, or it will fold.
A couple more benefits of working from Sioux Falls in the interim: 1) The SDSEO will still have its main office in Pierre, and the combined cost of the Pierre and Sioux Falls offices will actually be less than the cost of the current Pierre office. 2) Greater access to legislators. There are 12 districts west of Pierre, with state employee concentrations in just 5 of those. There are 23 districts east of Pierre, with state employee concentrations in 18 of them. It's much easier to arrange meetings with legislators when distance and time are not so large. 3) As with reason #2, more media outreach possible from Sioux Falls. 4) Reduced travel costs. The cost of one round-trip to almost anywhere East River is slightly less than the cost of one month's office rent in Sioux Falls.
Categories: Executive Board, House of Delegates, Legislative, Member, SDSEO Chapter, SDSEO Office