Exempt Entity -Tribal License Plates To Be Reissued In 2018

December 21, 2017

Pierre, S.D. – The South Dakota Department of Revenue’s motor vehicle division will reissue its exempt entity and tribal license plates in 2018.

Exempt entity plate holders can renew their annual vehicle registrations after Jan. 1, 2018, to receive the new plates. The exempt entity plate reissue will be the first of its kind since 2007.

Exempt entity plates are generally designated for vehicles owned by federal, state, tribal, county and municipal governments, but are also used for public schools, non-profits, mass-transit vehicles and fire departments.

The tribal license plates are also being reissued in 2018, but the reissue does not include the Cheyenne River Sioux tribal plate and all tribal veteran plates that were released July 1, 2017.

The tribal license plates are available to all South Dakotans, and may be obtained via your local county treasurer’s office, online at http://mysdcars.sd.gov or at any self-service terminal located around the state.

Thune Provision Would Help Prevent Out-of-Control Federal Prescribed Burns

 

Washington – U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) Tuesday offered an amendment to the Emergency Wildfire and Forest Management Act of 2016 that would address the way prescribed burns are handled by federal agencies. Thune’s amendment, which was adopted by unanimous consent during today’s Senate Agriculture Committee markup, would require the federal government to cooperate with local and state fire officials before a prescribed burn is initiated or actually started when fire danger is at extreme levels. The amendment also requires the chief of the Forest Service to submit a report to Congress describing the number and locations of prescribed burns conducted by any federal agency.

Thune stressed the importance of federal-local collaboration ahead of any a prescribed burn determination, saying, “Local officials are going to know a little bit more about what the conditions are in the area.” Thune went on to say that had local officials been consulted prior to the initiation of the prescribed burns in question, the fires never would have been set in the first place.

Thune offered this amendment in response to the Pautre fire, a prescribed burn that was intended to cover just over 100 acres in northwestern South Dakota, but quickly turned into a 16,000 acre out-of-control fire that burned for several days and destroyed millions of dollars in property; and the Cold Brook Fire, which was set by the National Park Service and burned out of control on Wind Cave National Park property.

Last April, Thune introduced the Prescribed Burn Approval Act of 2015, a standalone bill that would require similar collaboration between federal, state, and local agencies.

Regulated Institutions to Submit Self-Assessments of Diversity Policies and Practices

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

August 2, 2016

The federal banking agencies today provided information on how the financial institutions they regulate may begin to submit self-assessments of their diversity policies and practices as of year-end 2015, and issued Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about the process.Financial institutions are strongly encouraged to disclose on their websites their diversity policies and practices, as well as information related to their self-assessments, to maximize transparency, and to provide their policies, practices, and self-assessment information to their primary federal financial regulator. Additional information, with detailed submission instructions, will be provided at a later date directly to the institutions.

Section 342 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act required the federal financial regulatory agencies to establish an Office of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWI) and instructed the OMWI Director at each agency to develop standards for assessing the diversity policies and practices of its regulated institutions.

The standards, which became effective on June 10, 2015, reflect input received during a public comment period, as well as information gathered during outreach sessions. The standards provide a framework for regulated institutions to assess and establish or strengthen their diversity policies and practices.

The standards are intended to promote transparency and awareness of diversity policies and practices within the institutions. On July 13, 2016, the agencies announced that the Office of Management and Budget had approved the collection of the voluntary self-assessment information. The information may be used by the agencies to monitor diversity and inclusion trends and identify leading policies and practices in the financial services industry.

A list of Frequently Asked Questions and Answers is attached and also is available on the websites of the Federal Reserve Board, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) — Standards for Assessing the Diversity Policies and Practices of Entities Regulated by the Agencies (PDF)