Republicans in the South Dakota Legislature will consider several issues as part of their 2018 agenda. They hold a super majority in both the State House and Senate. House Majority Leader Lee Qualm of Platte says balancing the budget is at the top of the list. State Democrats want to advance legislation on campaign finance reform and economic development on Native American reservations in this year's session.
Religious leaders across the state are showcasing various faiths that exist in South Dakota. The first ever Interfaith Day was held in the capitol rotunda on the second legislative day in 2018.
Among Governor Dennis Daugaard’s goals for this year’s legislative session is a series of measures to grow the state’s microbrewing industry. Daugaard says South Dakota’s statutes put the state’s brewers well behind other small beer-makers. A micro-brewing website lists about two dozen such facilities in the state, with about 20 of those currently in business. The remaining breweries are listed as opening soon.
?The State House Education Committee met for the first time in the 20-18 session. Members took a few minutes to get to know Don Kirkegaard, who is serving a one-year term as Secretary of Education. Kirkegaard told the committee he has spent nearly 40 years as an educator, beginning with his first teaching job in the small northeast South Dakota town of Bristol.