Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to the National Park Service (NPS) Regional Director, Michael Reynolds, urging the NPS to enter into a cooperative management agreement with the State of South Dakota or a concession contract with a private campground operator to manage Wind Cave National Park’s Elk... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, today issued a statement following the release of President Obama’s long-delayed budget proposal: “Last week we learned that nearly 500,000 Americans stopped looking for work, driving down the labor force participation rate to 63.3 percent, the lowest level since Jimmy... Continue Reading
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator John Thune (R-SD), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, submitted for the record the following prepared remarks at today’s “State of Rural Communications” Communications, Technology, and the Internet Subcommittee hearing: Chairman Pryor, thank you and Ranking Member Wicker for working together... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to the Acting Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Bob Perciasepe, to express his concerns about the EPA release of personal information of approximately 80,000 agriculture producers to environmental groups, including more than 500 farms and ranches in South Dakota. This... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to the Chief of the U.S. Forest Service, Tom Tidwell, calling for the agency to take immediate action to reimburse landowners for the recent grassland fire in Perkins County. On April 3, 2013, the U.S. Forest Service lost control of a controlled... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) introduced the Emergency Forest Rehabilitation and Restoration Act, (S. 661) as another effort in his continuing battle to address the pine beetle infestation in the Black Hills National Forest and to improve the health of federally-owned forest land. Thune’s legislation includes a requirement that the Secretary of... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, issued the following statement today regarding the third anniversary of the signing of ObamaCare: “Three years after its enactment, the president’s health care legislation has proved to be a house of cards already beginning to collapse. Bipartisan majorities in both... Continue Reading
Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Ranking Member John Thune (R-SD) and House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) wrote today to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, expressing concerns about the potential impact on aviation safety due to the Administration’s choice to close 149 contract towers around... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) issued the following statement tonight after Democrats rejected his amendment (#307) to permanently abolish the federal death tax during the consideration of S. Con. Res. 8, the Senate Democrat budget: “A death in the family should not be a taxable event. Unfortunately, a majority of Senate... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D) and Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) today re-introduced legislation to expand the use of telehealth technology under Medicare to reduce hospital re-admissions in rural and underserved communities across the nation. The bipartisan Fostering Independence Through Technology (FITT) Act (S. 596) would create a pilot program to provide... Continue Reading
U.S. Senators Tim Johnson and John Thune announced today that legislation to allow construction of a visitor center at the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site cleared an important hurdle after it was reported out of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Johnson and Thune’s legislation would transfer approximately 29... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today led a bipartisan group of Senators in sending a letter to the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB). The letter encourages the development of a comprehensive system that allows states to retain control of medical licensure and ensure the safety of patients while allowing physicians... Continue Reading
