New State Law (HB 1085) creates new jobs for us!

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Basically, the law says that you can't get a certain dollar amount for registering people to vote. BUT you can get an hourly wage or a salary (!) to register people.

This means that instead of Democrats running a lot of losing campaigns in South Dakota (example--SD State Senate has 9 Democrats and 26 Republicans, almost a 3-1 difference)-- a lot of that campaign money
could possibly go to groups that PAY people to register voters--it would CREATE JOBS. Cool!

Now, don't hold your breath waiting for official Democrats in South Dakota to do this.

Nonprofit groups could be set up specifically to register voters--example---Register to Vote Harding County or Register to Vote Minnehaha County. Now, the goal would be to register voters legally. But the by product of this would be that NEW JOBS would be created!!

Why should the newspapers and media get huge chunks of campaign money?

Here's another example of this law---Legislators get $12,000 a year, if you toss in the $6,000 salary plus the per diems.

Wouldn't it be cool to set up a nonprofit group, raise $100,000 a year, then hire 5 people to register people to vote? That would create 5 very cool jobs, and they would be paid MORE than legislators!

OK, here's the law as it was passed:

ENTITLED, An Act to prohibit certain payments and receipt of payments for registering and assisting voters and to establish certain penalties.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA:
Section 1. That chapter 12-4 be amended by adding thereto a NEW SECTION to read as follows:
No person may employ, reward, or compensate any person to register voters based on the number of voters registered. Nothing in this section prohibits any person from hiring a person paid on an hourly or salaried basis to register voters. Any violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor.
Section 2. That chapter 12-4 be amended by adding thereto a NEW SECTION to read as follows:
No person may receive any wages, reward, or compensation for registering voters based on the number of voters registered. Nothing in this section prohibits any person from being employed on an hourly or salaried basis to register voters. Any violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor.
Section 3. That chapter 12-19 be amended by adding thereto a NEW SECTION to read as follows:
No person may employ, reward, or compensate any person to assist voters based on the number of voters assisted. Nothing in this section prohibits any person from hiring a person paid on an hourly or salaried basis to assist voters. Any violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor.
Section 4. That chapter 12-19 be amended by adding thereto a NEW SECTION to read as follows:
No person may receive any wages, reward, or compensation for assisting voters based on the number of voters assisted. Nothing in this section prohibits any person from being employed on an hourly or salaried basis to assist voters. Any violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor.
An Act to prohibit certain payments and receipt of payments for registering and assisting voters and to establish certain penalties.

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1. Closer look at this law

Section 1- Pay the employee hourly or salary--cool.

And then it wouldn't matter whether they registered one person or
50 people!

Section 2- Employee could only be paid salary or wage. No bonuses ever could be paid based on # of people registered. Cool!

Section 3- Employer could hire workers to assist voters on salary or hourly basis, but not based on the # of voters assisted. Cool!

Section 4- Restates Section 3 from the employees point of view.

This law is ultra-cool because it allows Democrats (and other parties) to help voters get registered and it creates JOBS for those people!

Isn't that what the Democratic Party is all about? Creating jobs!

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2. The law again

In this new law, "person" is not defined at the beginning of Title 12.

So presumably, it could apply to a Nonprofit Corporation, Nonprofit Association, for profit entity, a political commitee, ad hoc group.

It wouldn't matter if groups were set up to pay people $10 an hour to help register people, or if they recieved a salary of $20,000 a year, or even a smaller salary--say $500 a year to work 50 hours.

It would all be legal. It would help increase the number of registered voters.

It would also BOOST EMPLOYMENT!

Cool!

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3. 110 Senators! 200 Governors!

Instead of watching our State Senate and State House being dominated by the Republicans for the next 30 years, here's what we can do!

1. Set up a bunch of nonprofit groups that will hire people to register voters, pay all the employees the same salary.

2. Their job title could be: "Senator" or "Governor". They could each have an ID badge and business cards too!

3. To avoid confusion, their specific title could be:

"Senator of ABC Voting"
"Senator of Kadoka"
"Senator of Harding County"
"Senator of Okaton"
"Senator, XYZ Voting Group, Kadoka"
"Governor, XYZ Voting"

Something like that.

4. The Democratic Party would keep running 70 candidates and giving away 35 seats to the Republicans.

But these new Voter Registration groups (VR) would create Permanent Jobs.

5. Each of these VR Groups could spend 80% of their money on Voter Registration job salaries (Senators salaries!) Maybe 90% or so. Then they could donate 10% to local charities.

6. Each of these groups would keep their nonprofit status by dutifully registering ALL people who wish to be registered, avoid any endorsement of any candidates or parties.

7. I believe that the way the new law reads, even For Profit entities could hire people to register voters and pay them an hourly wage or a salary!

8. Here's an example: Joe Smith runs an online bookstore, he makes maybe $2000-3,000 a year. Joe decides to hire 2 people, pay them $500 each, and they work 50 hours a year to register voters. They work 50 hours, they get paid as employees. Legal, I bet!

9. Maxing out #8 above: The truth is that if a for profit business pays a wage to an employee, it doesn't matter whether they are selling books, doing inventory, helping customers, or registering voters--the wage/salary is deductible as a business expense. It wouldn't matter whether an employer paid an employee to work at the local zoo or museum (as a volunteer) or if they spent all their time registering voters, it probably would be deductible and reduce their taxable business income!

10. If #9 is true--what if a guy or gal was making lots of money, let's say $1,000,000 a year gross profit. Then they decided to pay people $100,000 a year to register voters. This would reduce their taxable income down to $900,000 and save taxes. And provide 5 cool jobs for people at $20,000 a year.

11. Let's make this very cool: How do you create 1,000 cool jobs that pay $500 a year? Do the math: raise $500,000

12. Even cooler: Democrats would then be able to GET COOL JOBS by working for nonprofits that register voters, have very cool job titles and business cards, and then: as employees of a nonprofit group, they could also put their money into IRA-SEPS and things like that.

13. Let's make this even more Ultra Cool than it is:

"Nothing in this section prohibits any person from hiring a person paid on an hourly or salaried basis to register voters. " (new law)

Money formerly sent to losing candidates campaigns would then got these VR Nonprofits.

Ultra Cool? Then these Nonprofits could legally "elect" these employees into offices that the Nonprofit sets up.

So an employee could draw $1000 a year salary, register voters, have a job title of "Senator" and also be elected as Senator of the XYZ Committee (or Assembly) of West River Voter Registration Drive..

Would this change people?

You bet!

Would people dig this?

Yes!

Would unemployed people appreciate having a permanent part-time or full-time salaried job, registering voters?

Yes!

Rather than waiting for a mass influx of New Yorkers to move into SD and then tip the legislature back to a Democratic majority, why not use the law

to create these Ultra Cool jobs?

I see it happening!

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4. Ya never know!

The 3 extra voters we sign up in Harding County,

maybe one of them will be the next Howard Dean of South Dakota!

Huh?

Go for it!