Moody County voters have a choice between two experienced lawmakers from Madison when it comes to voting in the District 8 Senate race.
Officially, it’s a rematch.
In 2016, Newcomer Jordan Youngberg, a Republican, defeated Democrat incumbent Scott Parsley. This year, Parsley is challenging Youngberg to claim back that seat.
District 8 includes Moody, Lake, Minor and Sanborn counties. Residents can register to vote until Oct. 22, and absentee voting is open until Nov. 5.
Below are the answers to Enterprise questions from Scott Parsley.
Scott Parsley
Age: 65
Address: Madison
Occupation: Retired from East River Electric
Family: Wife, Valerie; Son, Nicholas; Daughters Caitlin and Christina; Grandson Archer
Previous legislative experience: I served in the South Dakota House of Representatives from 2013 to 2015 and the South Dakota Senate from 2015 to 2017 representing District 8.
What is your top issue that you will advocate on District 8’s behalf in the legislature? There are many issues facing District 8 and the state: addiction, mental health, enough qualified workers to fill the job openings, early childhood education, needs based scholarships, education funding and the list goes on. These issues affect the people of District 8 every day.
I believe that the biggest issue we face is how we prioritize our state’s spending. Clearly, we need to balance our state budget, but within that framework, what are our priority spending beliefs? The state will have new revenue with the court’s ruling on sales tax collection for on-line purchases. I believe how we spend current and new revenues will be one of the biggest issues in the upcoming session. Do we budget to meet the needs of our citizens or do we create a budget to have a surplus at the end of the fiscal year? I believe our citizens’ needs come before having a sizable surplus at the end of the year.
Because all of the issues facing the state have ties to the budget, I will seek to serve on the Appropriations Committee as I have in the past.
What kind of bi-partisan cooperation would you use if elected to represent all voters? In my legislative experience, I have always worked across the aisle to get things accomplished. Once elected, I am in Pierre to represent all of the people of the district and the state, not just those of my party or those whom I agree with.
Being the people’s representative is not following the party line but rather listening to the people of District 8 and acting in their best interest.
What is the most important issue facing the state and how would you work to resolve it in this next legislative session? As I stated before, I believe that one of the most important issues is how the state prioritizes its spending. This one issue affects the lives of our citizens every day.
With South Dakota’s reliance on sales tax revenue, what would be your first cut if you had to make one, and what area most needs additional money if the state can afford it? Based on the experience I have had in helping to develop the state’s budget with current revenues, most of our sales tax dollars are spent on education and social services. I believe both are funded at their minimums today.
My approach to budget shortfalls would be to be sure we are budgeting for minimum surpluses, and then look at cutting each budget area as minimally as possible to meet the shortfalls. My experience tells me it is always painful to cut budgets; however, when the need arises to reduce spending, it is better to reduce every budget area a little rather than making a major cut in one area.
Why are you interested in serving District 8? I have always been interested in public service. My career was built around public service, working with non-profits. I believe I have a good understanding of public policy, and I am a good listener. My past service in the legislature bears this out. I listen to what the people of the district tell me and try to represent the majority.
