PIERRE, S.D. — Dueling measures dealing with a carbon capture pipeline slated for construction across eastern South Dakota met opposite fates Monday morning.
And once again, opponents of Summit Carbon Solutions plan to build the carbon pipeline across roughly 2,500 miles came out on top.
The Senate State Affairs Committee advanced House Bill 1052 to the full floor of the Senate by a 7-2 vote, putting it on the doorstep of Gov. Larry Rhoden’s office. The measure, only a sentence long, would make carbon pipelines “transporting carbon oxide” ineligible to use eminent domain in the state. It cleared the House on a 49-19 vote in January.
Hours before, the House State Affairs Committee unanimously killed Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff’s Senate Bill 198 — which would have pushed parties towards mediation as part of eminent domain litigation at the expense of the entity pursuing it. The Pierre Republican dubbed it as legislation that would strengthen landowner rights.
“Opposition has claimed that this was a bill to force mediation on landowners,” Mehlhaff told the House State Affairs Committee. “There is nothing in this bill that forces it, it is completely voluntary.”
Rep. Spencer Gosch of Glenham called it “Senate Bill 201 2.0,” referring to the pipeline-friendly measure voters soundly rejected at the ballot box in November.
Mehlhaff’s was one of two votes against HB 1052 — along with Sen. Arch Beal of Sioux Falls — after his counter-proposal went down. Speaker of the House Jon Hansen was one of the members who delivered the knock out punch to Mehlhaff’s bill, and later testified in favor of the House’s measure.
“The make up of this Legislature looks very different than it has in the last few years, in part because this government wasn’t listening to the pleas of the people asking us to protect their private property rights,” said Hansen, referring to the last June’s primary election results where a number of pro-carbon pipeline lawmakers were ousted.
During HB 1052’s hearing, over 150 landowners and activists from across the state poured to the front of the packed committee room to offer support for the measure. Both proponents and opponents of the measure were given about 30 minutes each to speak to it, far more than more routine bills in the Legislature are granted.
Opponents of HB 1052 — sponsored by Speaker Pro Tempore Karla Lems and Sen. Mark Lapka — included a handful of agricultural producers, Summit Carbon Solutions, and GEVO — the company is one of the ethanol plants planning to connect to the Summit line in Lake Preston if it ends up being built.
Mehlhaff questioned Lapka about why his proposal did not go after utilities like water and natural gas if the issue was eminent domain.
“I think the people of South Dakota understand to a high degree what is beneficial to them in their day-to-day lives and what is a requirement,” Lapka responded. “That is not the topic today.”
But as the old saying goes, no idea is ever dead in the State Capitol until session is over.
Both sides of the battle have back-up plans in the pocket. The House State Affairs Committee voted 9-4 near the end of their meeting to revive Mehlhaff’s bill and make it a second version of HB 1052. Rep. Tim Reisch called the move a “a bait-and-switch.”
“This is not the way we should be doing business in the people’s house,” Reisch continued. Proponents of the move noted the strong support landowners had given to the proposal that Summit has called a “kill shot” to the project.
Proponents of the carbon capture pipeline still have a trick still up their sleeve, too. Sen. Stephanie Sauder has a pending amendment to HB 1052 that would allow carbon capture pipelines to get eminent domain if they get a permit from the Public Utilities Commission and 67 percent of landowners on the proposed route to sign on. Summit currently has the latter.
House Bill 1052 will likely be debated on the Senate floor Tuesday. If it passes there, it will be delivered to the governor’s desk.
