HURON Three candidates for two District 22 state House of Representatives seats and two candidates for one District 2 County Commission seat met with the public on Saturday, in an election forum sponsored by Huron Chamber and Visitors Bureaus Governmental Affairs Committee.
The District 22 candidates began the proceedings, with Kevin Van Diepen having the opportunity to speak first for introductions.
Van Diepen referenced his 36-year career with the Huron Police Department, retiring in April as the Chief of Police. He also referenced his experience working with the legislature as part of the Chiefs of Police across the state.
Terry Nebelsick followed Van Diepen in opening statements, referencing that this was the candidates third forum in three days. He noted that he served 27 years in the Huron School District, including the final 10 years as the superintendent of schools. He noted his ability to listen and lead, learned through his experiences in education.
Finally, Lana Greenfield introduced herself. Greenfield noted her 37 years of teaching, including 26 in Doland. She added that she and her husband have run multiple businesses together in Clark and Doland over the years and said her experience as a business owner and also in education allowed her a unique perspective when she previously served in the legislature, chairing the education committee at that time.
The first question of the candidates asked their opinions on public pre-K education funding. Greenfield responded first, stating that the issue has come up multiple times in Pierre in the time she previously served in the legislature. She stated, I dont see a lot of support for pre-K funding out in Pierre at this time. As far as Im concerned, I think the status quo seems to be working, so Id like to leave it as it is.
Nebelsick said he was a strong advocate for public education for children. He pointed to strong research that early school intervention leads to better outcomes for student test scores. He added that the current available funding, for what he referred to as junior kindergarten for those who qualify, as essentially a two-year kindergarten experience for children.
Finally, he noted the fact that even if there was support in Pierre for funding pre-K education, the whole budget must be negotiated with taxpayers in mind, so that would come into play in the decision as well.
Van Diepen joked that he was competing with two long-time educators on the question and felt he was perhaps less directly knowledgable due to that. He did state that the city of Huron has an excellent pre-K education available, specifically naming the McKinley Learning Center and Headstart as two available public options in the city. He added that our children are our future, so any funding we can get into education.legislators should find the money for that. He said that fitting that funding within the whole budget would be a concern as well.
The candidates were also asked in two different questions how they would work with different personalities that would make up the legislature in Pierre and also how they would represent non-Republicans in Pierre.
Van Diepen leaned on his law enforcement career and the diversity of people that he worked with in that role. He explained that many people that he disagreed with and even put in jail in his time on the police force are now people that he has a positive relationship with. He said that he would first seek facts behind a statement before being pulled into an argument, one way or another. He also noted the diversity of the community of Huron and stated that bringing the ability to respect and work within that diversity to Pierre will allow for all voices to be heard.
Nebelsick began his response with, I think it is important that whatever you do in life, you are who you are and stood by the things that are the foundation of how you live your life. He also noted that in public education, he focused on making sure everyone got a place at the table. He stated that he is confident that he can put forth those values in Pierre.
Greenfield stated that her time in Pierre previously showed her that respect was the key. She would respect other opinions, but not let that alter her voting her own conscience. She also stated that working with the person, not the party affiliated, allows for much more work to get done in Pierre than party politics.
Finally, the candidates were asked about SB 203 that allowed an exception to conceal carry within school. Van Diepen led the response on the question. He said that the Huron district allows school resource officers within the school and that increases the safety in the Huron district. He understands that smaller districts could potentially benefit from the provision due to less resources for SROs, though he does believe that anyone with enhanced carry should get additional training before being allowed to bring a weapon into school.
Nebelsick echoed Van Diepens response, stating that larger districts have the ability to have a strong and fast local response. He referenced that strategic plans with the Huron Police Department would allow for a response within seconds, maybe minutes to any incident within a school.
However, he noted that many districts in the state are dealing with response times of hours before law enforcement could be present for any incident in a school. He stated that the local school board should decide whether it is allowed in that district.
Greenfield referenced a previous bill that was passed, agreeing that small schools could potentially use someone in the system with a conceal carry permit, but that it should be at the behest of the school board.
County commission
After a brief break, the county commission candidates, Rick Benson and Jerad Zerfoss each took time to answer questions, beginning with an opening statement.
Benson led off, joking that the good weather likely led to low turnout for the forum. He noted that during his time on the commission, hes been proud of the non-partisan way that the commission has worked in his time on the board. He noted that currently the entire board is Republican, but in the past that wasnt true, and politics never entered into decisions.
Zerfoss explained his desire to run after being approached by multiple people. He cited infrastructure concerns within the county and how to fund improvements if state and/or federal funding were to go away to fund the current work on infrastructure thats been done recently.
The first question to the candidates was what the major challenge in the county to address in the near and distant future. Zerfoss returned to his focus on infrastructure, stating that the current commission has done an excellent job in improving roads and bridges using the funds available, but that we need to be looking 20, 30 years out as well.
Benson agreed that infrastructure is a big issue, noting that there are 573 miles of roads in Beadle County, stating that the Highway Supervisor is doing an excellent job using funds available to do a portion of roads each year. He noted that additional federal funds offered recently will allow for up to nine bridges to be replaced this year. He also noted that additional loads on the roads and bridges contribute to quicker deterioration of roads and bridges.
When asked beyond infrastructure what the major issue the county needs to focus on, Benson quickly responded that roads, jail, and court-appointed attorney fees claim a large amount of the countys funding, and finding ways to use funds well in those areas is a major focus.
Zerfoss cited mental health within the county and finding ways to ensure everyone within the county has access to available mental health services.
The candidates were asked about the relationship between the state legislature and counties, and Benson answered first, stating bluntly, I dont think the communication has been as good as it should be. He did explain that much of that issue is a lack of being proactive to take things to the legislature rather than being reactive once things are done.
Zerfoss noted that when people quit talking and communicating, questions are left unanswered. He stated that financing is passed in Pierre, and that the communication needs to be both ways with the county commission and local legislators.
Another question was asked regarding property assessment within the county. Benson explained that the Director of Equalization in the county has hit a section of the county every year to reassess, and he understands that some people dont like the adjustments, but its based on land sales, so especially agriculture land has escalated quite a bit.
Zerfoss agreed, noting that his own experience working with Hand County as well has seen similar valuations.
The primary election for both offices is June 4. Early in-person voting at the courthouse for eligible voters is open already.
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