Author
South Dakota medical marijuana businesses are facing a $3,690 fee increase
Medical marijuana businesses in South Dakota will soon face a nearly 70% increase in their annual state registration fees, rising from $5,310 to $9,000. “For a business-friendly state, this is not a business-friendly approach,” said Deb Peters, president of the Cannabis Industry Association of South Dakota. The Department of Health oversees the state’s medical marijuana […]
Bowhunters are volunteering to improve pronghorn survival in western South Dakota
Bowhunters in western South Dakota are volunteering to replace sheep fences with a pronghorn-friendly alternative, aiming to improve the survival of the world’s second-fastest land mammal. Pronghorns, often called antelope, are native to North America and thrive in the American West, including the area west of the Missouri River in South Dakota. The animals reach […]
Lack of discipline, bad weather caused Ellsworth’s $456 million B-1 bomber crash, report says
An undisciplined chain of command and unforeseen weather caused the $456 million B-1 bomber crash at Ellsworth Air Force Base near Rapid City, according to a July 7 report from the U.S. Air Force. The B-1B Lancer crash-landed Jan. 4, 2024. The mishap occurred at 5:47 p.m. during a training mission. The aircraft hit the […]
Doctors form group to support abortion-rights ballot measure
A new group of doctors will join the effort to pass a ballot measure that would reinstate abortion rights in South Dakota. “Hopefully we can inject some reality into what I’m sure will be a little bit of a contentious, very rhetoric-filled issue,” said Amy Kelley, a Sioux Falls OB-GYN and co-chair of the group. […]
Freedom Scholarship update: $10 million awarded, $260,000 converted to loans
SIOUX FALLS — A scholarship program that incentivizes graduates to stay and work in South Dakota has awarded 2,785 scholarships to 1,995 students in its first two years. “Most all of them are going straight into the South Dakota workforce,” said Freedom Scholarship Coordinator Elli Haerter. The board that oversees the program revealed data from […]
South Dakota attorney general joins opposition to reclassifying weed as less-dangerous drug
South Dakota’s attorney general has joined counterparts in 10 other states in writing a letter of opposition to a Biden administration proposal that would reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III substance. Schedule I drugs are those classified by the federal government as those that have no medical use and are most […]
McCook Lake catastrophe shatters complacency around old flood plans
When a record-high surge of water flowed down the Big Sioux River toward the southeast corner of South Dakota last month, local and state authorities activated a flood mitigation plan from 1976. It saved North Sioux City and Dakota Dunes from disaster. But their neighbors in McCook Lake suffered a graphic reminder of how different […]
‘We have nothing’: Flood victims say government failures continue after botched flood warning
McCOOK LAKE — Neither Morgan Speichinger nor many of her neighbors came away worried on June 23 after listening to Gov. Kristi Noem talk about flooding in the southeastern corner of South Dakota. “Noem’s press conference made it sound like it wasn’t going to be bad for us,” Speichinger said. “There was no talk of […]
Former state employee accused of stealing $1.8 million from Child Protection Services
An Iowa woman who formerly worked for the South Dakota Department of Social Services is accused of stealing an estimated $1.8 million from the department’s Division of Child Protection Services over the course of 13 years. Lonna Carroll, 68, of Algona, Iowa, is charged with two felony counts of aggravated grand theft. She was arrested […]
Some legislators lukewarm on Noem’s plan to spend $81 million surplus on prisons
Some South Dakota legislators aren’t sure they’re ready to support Gov. Kristi Noem’s plan to devote an $81 million budget surplus to prison construction. The future women’s prison in Rapid City is estimated to cost $87 million, and already has funding from the Legislature. The state has also allocated $567 million from state and federal […]
Trump ‘honored the Constitution,’ Noem says in convention speech
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem used her Monday evening speech at the Republican National Convention to praise former President Donald Trump’s devotion to the Constitution, without mentioning that he’s criminally accused of subverting it. “I’ve been governor under both President Trump and Joe Biden, and people ask me all the time, ‘What’s the biggest difference?’” […]
Judge dismisses lawsuit against abortion-rights ballot measure
SIOUX FALLS — A judge on Monday dismissed the lawsuit challenging South Dakota’s abortion-rights ballot measure, saying the litigation should have targeted the Secretary of State’s Office rather than only the group that petitioned the measure onto the ballot. The losing party vowed to appeal the decision to the state Supreme Court, leaving South Dakota […]