South Dakota

City leaders fund child care center with tax district typically used for roads, sewer

By creating a tax increment financing district, Madison, South Dakota, looks to build a child care center to improve local economic development and access to child care services.

  • By Makenzie Huber, South Dakota Searchlight

Executive Order Blocks State Business With ‘Evil Foreign Governments’

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s order will ensure companies associated with hostile nations do not access state infrastructure or data through IT or telecommunications contracts.

  • By Chris Teale

States With the Highest Personal Income Growth

Total income growth is higher in all states than before the pandemic, thanks to elevated levels of government assistance and growth in wages, according to a report.

  • By Andre Claudio

Analysis: All 50 States Experience Historic Personal Income Growth in 2020

The rise in personal incomes nationwide is the biggest in 20 years, and because of the pandemic, can largely be attributed to unprecedented government assistance, according to a Pew report.

  • By Brent Woodie

In Some States, Unemployment Stays Stubbornly High

Despite rebounds in some states, millions remain unemployed with no job prospects.

  • By Tim Henderson, Stateline

Arizona Legislature Closed After Giuliani Hearing

STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Covid-19 patients flown out of South Dakota… Alabama sheriff takes down “thugshots” social media post… Republican governors call for Congress to pass Covid aid.

  • By Andrea Noble

Fast Moving Colorado Wildfire Still Raging in State

STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Michigan prohibits voters from carrying guns to the polls … Virginia home health workers to get one-time bonus pay … Rhode Island cracks down on break rooms.

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram

Covid-19 Cases Dropped by 75% in One State After Local Leaders Were Allowed to Require Masks

A CDC report said the drop followed a spike in cases in Arizona after the state's stay-at-home order expired, underscoring the utility of face coverings in curbing spread of the disease.

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram

South Dakota AG Says He Thought He Hit a Deer, but Found Man's Body the Next Day

STATE AND LOCAL NEWS ROUNDUP | Wisconsin Supreme Court decision keeps Green Party off presidential ballot and allows absentee ballots to be sent out … Reward offered to identify suspect in shooting that seriously injured Los Angeles sheriff deputies … Hurricane Sally rapidly intensifies as it nears Gulf Coast.

  • By Laura Maggi

Critics Question CARES Act Spending in Some States

“I’ve yet to meet a pothole that has the coronavirus.”

  • By Sophie Quinton, Stateline

States Crack Down on Large Gatherings as Covid-19 Continues to Spread

Minnesota officials are seeking damages from a ranch owner who held a three-day rodeo in defiance of state regulations on large gatherings. They say at least one attendee tested positive for Covid-19 days after the event.

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram

States Include Job Training in Reopening Plans

South Dakota will offer free or discounted job training to people who have lost their jobs during the coronavirus pandemic, one of several states to include employment programs in long-term recovery plans.

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram
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State Legislatures Scramble to Meet in the Age of Coronavirus

Lawmakers across the country rushed to pass resolutions permitting virtual meetings and remote voting, efforts they said were necessary to adhere to social distancing guidelines and protect legislators.

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram

Interest Rate Cap on 'Payday Loans’ Yields Positive Results, Group Says

South Dakota imposed the 36% cap under a 2016 ballot measure. At least 15 other states have similar limits on the books.

  • By Bill Lucia

In Two States, Debates Over the Ethics of Paid Surrogacy

Lawmakers in New York, one of only three states where paid surrogacy is illegal, are trying to repeal their ban. Meanwhile, in South Dakota, legislators say surrogacy has led to the commercialization of children and want to prohibit it.

  • By Emma Coleman

‘Meth. We’re On It.’ Ad Campaign in South Dakota Gets Attention

The slogan went viral on Twitter when users commented that the ads missed the mark. State officials say the discussion the campaign prompted is exactly the point.

  • By Emma Coleman

'In God We Trust' Now Mandatory Display in These Public Schools

STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Texas secretary of state job still open ... New voting machines picked in Georgia ... Pushback from Baltimore after the president's tweets.

  • By Laura Maggi

‘Contrarian’ State Pension Plan is One of The Nation’s Best-Funded

South Dakota's retirement system for public employees has been over 90 percent funded for nearly two decades. The state's investment officer discusses how its assets are managed.

  • By Bill Lucia

Oglala Sioux Tribe Calls for Help in South Dakota as Flooding Continues

STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Lawmakers consider changes to Medicaid expansion in Idaho ... Cracking down on uninsured drivers in Oklahoma ... Oregon lawmakers ponder a pay raise.

  • By Laura Maggi

When Does a Winter Storm Become a Bomb Cyclone?

What raises a common winter storm to the level of 'bomb cyclone'? It's all about rapid, sharp changes in atmospheric pressure— and the scientists who coined the term meant to highlight their power.

  • By Russ Schumacher, The Conversation

Republican Governors Want Trade War With China Over Quickly

An outcome to negotiations that lowers or ends Chinese tariffs could be critical to President Trump’s reelection hopes, Arkansas’ governor predicted.

  • By Dave Nyczepir