Our goal is to have each candidate contacted once a month (preferably by a different person each time) up until elections in November.

This is the best time for us to educate candidates on our issue.

We have prepared fact sheets that can be given to the candidates during each of these visits. You can get these from your District Contact or download them from the internet at SDSCO.2truth.com. If you don’t have a District Contact call Debbie (see District 17). A personal visit is best, but a handwritten letter, phone call or email is also acceptable. If you talk to a candidate, Ida suggested at the workshop that you follow up by sending them a thank you note with a fact sheet. In an effort to be as informed as possible about our legislators and how much contact they’ve had with our members, we ask that whenever a candidate is contacted, that the Legislative Contact form be sent to Debbie (qpease@hcinet.net or 46051 299th St, Centerville, SD 57014). The information will be organized and used to more effectively lobby the legislators in Pierre during the legislative session.

After the Election This is a great opportunity to congratulate winning candidates from your district and remind them that we are counting on them to help us provide midwifery care for home birth families in South Dakota by passing the Independent Midwifery Practice Act.

As soon as we find out committee assignments, we will need everyone to begin contacting the committee members who will hear our bills.

During the Legislative Session We would like to encourage everyone to consider visiting with their legislators in Pierre during the legislative session, as this really shows our dedication to our cause. Bring the kids and have their picture taken with their legislators. (Ida suggested bringing a little treat for your legislators when you visit with them. We are working on stickers with our logo that you can put on homemade goodies.)

We will also need people willing to testify at our committee hearings and people just to show up in support.

If you or a group from your district is willing to make the journey to Pierre to meet with your legislators, attend or testify during a committee meeting, please contact Francie at 845-2507 or titus2fs@yahoo.com. She will give you the information you need to make the most of your visit to Pierre and to coordinate your efforts with others in SDSCO, Inc.

We will need LOTS of people willing to send off short email messages and phone messages to Pierre during certain times during the session. (These times are outlined on the “Legislative Time Line”.) As soon as we know when our bill is going to be voted on we will alert our members by email.

District Contacts will be working to set up a network in their districts where members with email will contact members without email via phone during critical times. If you are not being emailed this newsletter and you have an email address, please send your current email to: sdsco_safe@hotmail.com. Thank you!