South Dakota’s Highway Patrol reports the department is understaffed by about 25. Officials say that impacts drunk driving and citations across the state.
Department of Public Safety secretary Bob Perry told legislators on the the Government Operations and Audit Committee more drunk drivers are on the roads because of a lack of staffing at the Highway Patrol. He said more officers on the road is the solution.
“We’re a little low in DUI enforcement, and where we’re low in those numbers that specifically come from Highway Patrol activity, I will tell you it’s mostly due to staffing," Perry said. "Obviously, if we had 25 more troopers, we’d have higher citation numbers and DUI arrests.”
At the same time though, the state Highway Patrol also operates on a near $8 million budget, and nine new positions were added with a one-time expense of $1 million, and at a yearly cost $1.4 million.
Lawmakers on the committee asked Perry whether the governor’s Operation Prairie Thunder initiative has diverted further resources from day-to-day operations. The initiative offers state support to Immigration and Customs Enforcement in immigration enforcement.
Perry said many of the jobs for Prairie Thunder came from the patrols drug interdiction department. While he said these troopers are more malleable, he doesn’t deny there is some impact.
“These troopers are not assigned to specific squads so it’s easier to move them around without impacting another part of the state," Perry said. "There’s a little impact in that there isn’t an interdiction trooper for those two days in Kadoka or wherever they might be assigned, but generally we are not using troopers assigned to (general) squads.”
Generally, reports indicate the areas with the most Highway Patrol vacancies are rural communities. Leaders say a lack of desire to work in rural communities are the primary driver of these openings.