How priorities of Noem's final budget address have fared
'Last year during this speech, I asked you to make a permanent tax cut for the people of South Dakota,' Noem said during December's budget address. 'And I am reiterating that request to all of you today. Our people deserve better than a temporary sales tax holiday, and I look forward to that conversation during this legislative session.'
Spring Creek fire spreads
In 2023, Noem signed legislation to drop the state's sales tax rate from 4.5% to 4.2%. However, it is set to return to 4.5% in 2027. Senate Bill 214 during the ongoing legislative session would have kept the sales tax rate at 4.2%; in other words, it would have made the cut permanent. But lawmakers on the Senate Committee on Appropriations decided to table the bill on Jan. 20. Noem also sought to set up vouchers to put public money toward private education and homeschooling.
'I am proposing that we establish education savings accounts for South Dakota students in this upcoming legislative session,' Noem said in December.
The legislation to make that a reality also failed, with the House Education Committee killing HB 1020 on Jan 29. HB 1025 also failed; in its original form, it would have appropriated money to build a new men's prison in Lincoln County.
'The current building is falling down,' Noem said in December. 'It's long past time for us to replace it for the safety of our people.'
But lawmakers gutted HB 1025 and eventually decided to not send it over to the Senate. Rhoden's office announced Wednesday afternoon that he is going to 'announce next steps for a new prison' Thursday morning.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
4 hours ago
- New York Times
Trump to Create Task Force for L.A. Olympics on Security
President Trump plans to create a task force Tuesday that would boost the federal government's hand in preparations for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, a city where officials have a strained relationship with the president. On Tuesday, Mr. Trump is scheduled to sign an executive order creating a White House task force for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, a White House official said. The task force will focus on security along with other logistics for the Olympic Games, which are scheduled to begin in July 2028 and will be followed by the Summer Paralympics in August. The Department of Homeland Security has classified the games as a National Special Security Event, a designation given to high-profile events to coordinate security plans with the F.B.I., the Secret Service and other federal agencies. It was unclear how closely the task force will work with local officials in Los Angeles, a city led by Democrats. The Trump administration has had a strained relationship with leaders across Southern California, which has been the target of widespread immigration raids that began in June. A temporary restraining order has barred federal agents from making immigration arrests in the region without probable cause, and Los Angeles and several other cities joined a lawsuit seeking to stop the raids. Planning for the Olympics comes as Los Angeles faces a budget crisis worsened by two devastating wildfires in January that destroyed thousands of homes in Pacific Palisades and Altadena. Organizing the Olympics in any city is a massive undertaking that involves preparing for thousands of athletes and tourists, but officials in Los Angeles have said they are confident the games will be a success. In a statement on Monday, Casey Wasserman, the chairman of the Los Angeles Olympics organizing committee, thanked Mr. Trump and his administration for their 'leadership and unwavering support' ahead of the games. The games will mark the first time an American city has hosted the Summer Olympics since Atlanta did in 1996. A deadly pipe bomb exploded during the games at Centennial Olympic Park and injured many. Los Angeles had previously hosted the games in 1932 and 1984. The 2028 Olympics will be held at venues across Southern California, including Long Beach, Inglewood, Carson and Arcadia. At least two events, canoe slalom and softball, will be played outside of California in Oklahoma City.
Epoch Times
6 hours ago
- Epoch Times
DHS Says Boycotts Targeting Israel Will Still Result in FEMA Cuts, Carveouts for Sanctuary Cities Remain
The Department of Homeland Security has changed a document that could have explicitly denied disaster relief to states, cities, and smaller recipients for any boycotts targeting Israel. It no longer defines what it calls a 'discriminatory prohibited boycott' as one aimed at Israeli firms or firms operating in Israel. But the updated terms and conditions still bar funding to those who engage in a discriminatory prohibited boycott, though without defining that term.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
New Hegseth Leak Reveals Secret Plan for Years of Troops on U.S. Streets
The Department of Homeland Security is looking to boost its deployment of the military on the streets of the U.S. in order to help carry out Donald Trump's immigration policies, according to a leaked memo written by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's brother. The document, obtained by The New Republic, details plans for how the Trump administration could use the military to assist with domestic law enforcement as part of its mass deportation agenda for 'years' to come. The letter from Phil Hegseth, the younger brother of the defense secretary, pushed for the move despite admitting the deployment of thousands of National Guard troops and U.S. Marines to Los Angeles amid the anti-ICE protests was not 'perfect.' Its leak is the latest to begall the leak-prone Pentagon, where a paranoid Hegseth has been making aides and even generals take polygraphs to work out who is revealing his secrets. Carrie Lee, senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund, told The New Republic the contents of the memo are 'disturbing' and outline intent to use the 'military within the United States at a level not seen since Japanese internment.' 'The military is the most powerful, coercive tool our country has. We don't want the military doing law enforcement,' Lee said. 'It absolutely undermines the rule of law.' Phil Hegseth, who works inside the Pentagon as a liaison to the Department of Homeland Security and as a senior adviser to the defense secretary, previously made headline news after it was alleged his brother discussed the Trump administration's plans to attack Yemen with him on a messaging app during the Signalgate controversy. He is now alleged to have written a memo that outlines a July 21 meeting between senior DHS and Pentagon officials discussing how the departments could coordinate 'in defense of the homeland.' That includes convincing leading military officials, such as Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, of the 'urgency' of the so-called 'homeland defense mission.' The memo also suggests this ramping up of military deployment is needed as foreign gangs and drug cartels that Trump has listed as terrorist organizations pose a similar threat to 'Al Qaeda or ISIS cells and fighters operating freely inside America.' Elsewhere, the memo suggests that the deployment of troops to L.A.—which allegedly saw them sleeping on floors, not being provided food or water, and complaining of having nothing to do once the protest calmed down—did not go as planned. 'Everyone here is also aware of our joint work in L.A. It hasn't been perfect, and we're still working through best practices together, but I think it's a good indicator of the type of operations (and resistance) we're going to be working through for years to come,' the memo said. Joseph Nunn, counsel for the Liberty and National Security Program at the Brennan Center, told The New Republic that the memo suggests 'military involvement in domestic civilian law enforcement' on the streets of the U.S. is about to become 'more common.' The White House, DHS, and the DoD did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast. The younger Hegseth was a podcast producer and social media poster for a conservative think-tank before his brother's rise from the Fox & Friends Weekend couch to being in charge of the world's most powerful military. He is not technically a Pentagon employee, but one of the Department of Homeland Security, which means anti-nepotism rules are not directly engaged. But he has an office close to his older brother—a three-times married father and stepfather of seven who promised at his confirmation hearing that he would no longer drink amid accusations of extreme alcohol use and sexual assault, which he denied—and has been dubbed the 'emotional support brother' for the embattled Trump cabinet member.
