local government

The South Dakota House of Representatives chamber at the Capitol in Pierre. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Legislature will tackle county funding and long term care in summer studies

BY: - March 27, 2023

The 2023 legislative session ended Monday, but legislators are already preparing and researching issues ahead of the 2024 session. The Legislature will conduct two summer studies this year focusing on long term care sustainability as well as county funding and mandated services, the Executive Board decided Monday. The summer studies allow legislators to learn about […]

COMMENTARY
The Senate floor in the South Dakota Capitol at Pierre. (Joshua Haiar/SD Searchlight)

Bill on public comments at meetings doesn’t go far enough

BY: - February 5, 2023

Whenever the topic is citizens being mistreated by their local government, it’s not uncommon to hear the phrase, “There oughta be a law.” Well, if you’ve been mistreated by a local government entity and your friend is a member of the state House of Representatives, a new law is what you’re going to get. That’s […]

Photo of the Dewey County Courthouse in winter, built in 1959 and located in Timber Lake, South Dakota.

Bill would make it harder to move county seats; opponents call it ‘antidemocratic’

BY: - January 13, 2023

Sen. Ryan Maher, R-Isabel, wants to make it more difficult to move a county seat to another city. Senate Bill 56, which he introduced Tuesday, follows a failed 2022 effort to move the Dewey County seat from Timber Lake to Eagle Butte.  Dewey County is one of a few South Dakota counties that is within […]

Sioux Falls Police Chief Jon Thum addresses the city's homeless task force on Oct. 24, 2022 in Carnegie Town Hall in Sioux Falls.

Street teams, ‘housing first’ among recommendations from Sioux Falls homeless task force

BY: - October 25, 2022

Street teams of social workers and volunteers would be the first to respond to panhandling and loitering if the Sioux Falls City Council heeds the advice of its homeless task force. The task force met Monday for one of its final meetings before pitching its suggestions to the council.  The group emerged earlier this year […]