EXPLAINS: Will legislators dig in Kristi Noem, appraisers?

SIOUX FALLS, SD (AP) – Lawyers in South Dakota want to look at a government agency that has been …

SIOUX FALLS, SD (AP) – South Dakota lawmakers will look at a government agency that has been at the center of questions about whether Governor Kristi Noem used his influence to help his daughter apply for a property appraisal license.

At first glance, the first business area for the legislature’s Government Operations and Audit Committee on Thursday appears to be routine: “The Department of Labor and Regulation is discussing the appraisal program for the appraiser.”

But that could have a big impact on the Republican governor, who has generated speculation about a possible bid in 2024 in the White House. Noem has been investigated after the Associated Press reported that she held a meeting in her office last year that included her daughter, Kassidy Peters, and the director of the Appraiser Certification Program, who had moved days earlier to reject Peter’s license application. Peters received his certification four months later.

Here’s what you need to know about the committee meeting:

WHO SPEAKS?

Lawmakers have cut a few hours into a busy schedule to hear from four people.

One is the former director of the Appraiser Certification Program, Sherry Bren. She was summoned to the July 2020 meeting at the governor’s office and was pressured to retire shortly after Peters received her license in November.

Another official to speak is Labor Secretary and Regulation Marcia Hultman. She was also present at the meeting and later pressured Bren to retire. Hultman has defended her actions by saying there have been positive changes at the agency since Bren left.

Lawmakers have also called the president of the state professional assessment association, Sandra Gresh. She has raised concerns about the new direction of the state program.

The director of the State Office of Risk Management, Craig Ambach, is also expected to appear. His office helped negotiate a $ 200,000 payment to Bren for her to retire and withdraw a complaint of age discrimination. Both Bren and Hultman are bound by a clause in this settlement that prohibits them from degrading each other.

WHAT HAPPENED AT THE MEETING IN NOEM’S OFFICE?

It is not entirely clear. The governor has not answered detailed questions about the meeting. Bren told the AP that it covered the assessment certification procedures and that she was presented with a letter from Peters’ supervisor criticizing the agency’s decision to deny the license.

Noem has said she did not ask for special treatment for her daughter. She has cast the section as yet another way in which she has “cut bureaucracy” to address the shortage of appraisers and smooth the home buying process.

In a YouTube video responding to the AP’s report, Noem pointed out that Bren had been in her position for decades, and she accused the system “was designed to benefit those already certified and to keep others out . “

IS THERE A MAP OF ASSESSMENTS?

Yes. Industry experts have long said it is a problem, especially in rural states. In South Dakota, many experienced appraisers are approaching retirement age.

However, the governor’s ability to “streamline” licensing requirements would be limited because they are mostly set at the federal level.

As governor, Noem has worked to ease licensing requirements for a number of professions. She said she had been working on appraisal rules for years.

Asked about examples of this work before last year, her spokeswoman Ian Fury pointed out that during his eight years in Congress, Noem twice signed GOP-sponsored bills that, among other things, would have adjusted federal appraisal rules.

HOW CAN THE CARD BE SOLVED?

Since Brens’ departure, Noem’s administration has moved to waive certification requirements that go beyond federal standards, e.g. An exam for entrance assessments.

But the leadership of the Professional Appraisers Association of South Dakota has raised concerns about these traits. The group says the biggest barrier to becoming an appraiser is the lack of supervisors who can train new appraisers.

Before leaving her job, Bren worked on launching a first-of-its-kind program that would allow appraisers to take practical courses and avoid the traditional apprenticeship that has become a bottleneck. Bren helped the state win an annual federal grant of $ 120,000 and later testified in law in support of a bill to create the education program. Noem signed it into law this year.

WHAT WILL THE COMMITTEE DO?

It’s not clear. Republican lawmakers said they will start by asking about the state agency and why there are difficulties in becoming an appraiser. But they also acknowledged that the meeting was an opportunity to question the governor’s behavior. Only two Democrats sit on the committee of 10 people.

If lawmakers are satisfied, they can move on from the issue.

They could also decide to dive deeper. The committee has the power to summon witnesses and records, but that would require the approval of the executive board, a ranking committee of top lawmakers.

Kathleen Clark, a professor of law specializing in government ethics at Washington University in St. Louis, said she would not be happy with the governor’s explanation that she was simply trying to “cut bureaucracy”.

“It is conceivable that the agency’s processes needed improvements,” she said. “But the daughter’s presence and the timing of the meeting suggest that this was not a meeting aimed at improving processes in general, but instead aimed at pressuring the agency to change its mind.”

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