Statehouse

While the state Legislature and the Governor’s office have agreed to build a prison, conversations about rehabilitation inside the prison walls are now coming into focus.

South Dakota’s Highway Patrol reports the department is understaffed by about 25. Officials say that impacts drunk driving and citations across the state.

In a special session, lawmakers moved forward with a plan to construct a new 1,500-bed prison facility in Sioux Falls.

As tax increment finance, or TIF, districts continue to be debated, they were an item of focus at the most recent meeting of the state comprehensive property tax task force. Some lawmakers still aren’t convinced of their effectiveness.

At the latest State-Tribal Relations Committee meeting, South Dakota lawmakers discussed potential legislation to address law enforcement training and additional protections for tribal officers.

While the governor's plan outlines $154 million in "savings" from the previous Lincoln County site, the state spent $20.8 million that can never be recovered.

South Dakota lawmakers are taking up a growing nationwide effort to streamline services for vulnerable populations.

The governor's office has released the plan for a new men's prison in Sioux Falls as well as a comparison to a Nebraska prison proposal.

Gov. Larry Rhoden has released drafted legislation that could determine the fate of a new men’s prison in South Dakota.

In the offseason, lawmakers are trying to figure out how to deliver promised property tax cuts while keeping government functioning.