HOME INSURANCE COSTS IN SOUTH DAKOTA RISING FASTER THAN MOST STATES IN THE REGION

SOUTH DAKOTA (Todd Epp / Northern Plains News) – Homeowners in South Dakota are paying sharply higher insurance premiums, with rates rising faster than in most neighboring states due to severe weather and the increasing cost of rebuilding, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis reported, citing data from S&P Global, that the average annual premium for a homeowner’s insurance policy in South Dakota increased 41 percent over the past seven years, compared to a 34 percent national average. In the same period, inflation rose just 24 percent.

In comparison, Minnesota and Montana—also in the Ninth Federal Reserve District—saw premiums rise faster than the national average, but not as quickly as South Dakota, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.

S.D. Home Premiums Are High but Not the Highest

According to Bankrate, a consumer financial services company, Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma, which are more frequently hit by tornadoes and hail, have even higher average premiums. Nebraska homeowners pay an average of $4,745 per year, Kansas $4,072, and Oklahoma $4,565, compared to $2,455 in South Dakota, Bankrate reported in 2024.

In a September 2024 report, the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis said catastrophic weather events are “a key driver” of premium hikes in the Upper Midwest, including South Dakota, Minnesota, and Montana. The report noted that nearly half of the United States’ 19 “billion-dollar storms” in 2023 struck states in the Ninth District, which includes South Dakota.

“In Florida, it’s hurricanes,” the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis said in its report. “In California, Montana, and many Western states, it’s wildfires. In the Upper Midwest, it’s wind and hailstorms. All of which are exacerbated by the inflation of construction costs”.

Impact of Crop Insurance Payments

South Dakota’s insurance market is also affected by the high frequency of crop insurance payouts due to extreme weather. Between 2001 and 2022, South Dakota farmers received nearly $10 billion in payouts from the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation. Payments were for weather disasters like drought, excess moisture, and hail, which rose significantly, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data.

South Dakota ranked third nationally for drought payouts ($4.1 billion), third for excess moisture ($3.3 billion), and sixth for hail damage ($620 million) over that period, South Dakota News Watch reported.

Anne Schechinger, Midwest director for the Environmental Working Group, said there is a strong correlation between rising crop insurance payouts and the increasing impacts of climate change.

“We’re very confident there’s a strong connection to climate change here because farms are some of the businesses most vulnerable to climate change purely because of the nature of farming,” Schechinger said in an interview with South Dakota News Watch.

Scott VanderWal, president of the South Dakota Farm Bureau Federation, said the crop insurance program “is so vitally important for the ability of farmers and ranchers to manage their risk” in an industry dependent on the weather for success, according to South Dakota News Watch.

The rising cost of insurance impacts both urban and rural South Dakotans. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, higher premiums mean higher monthly costs for families in Sioux Falls, Rapid City, and across the state. They can be especially difficult for those on fixed incomes.

Impact on S.D. Homeowners

Rising insurance costs in South Dakota are outpacing most of the region, directly impacting monthly budgets for homeowners, renters, and farmers. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, the trend is expected to continue as extreme weather becomes more common.

 

LIBRARIES EVOLVE AND THRIVE DESPITE UNCERTAINTY IN FUNDING

REDFEILD, S.D. (Bart Pfankuch / South Dakota News Watch) – On five occasions this year, librarian Sarah Jones-Lutter has left the quiet, comfortable confines of the historic Redfield Carnegie Library and made her voice heard in the uncertain world of politics.

Jones-Lutter made four trips to the Capitol in Pierre and recently flew to Washington to lobby state and federal lawmakers against proposed funding cuts that could hurt libraries in her hometown and across the state.

One of her trips to the Legislature was to testify against a bill, which ultimately failed, that would have imposed criminal penalties on South Dakota librarians who allowed children to view materials deemed harmful to minors.

Jones-Lutter said she’s puzzled why former Gov. Kristi Noem proposed massive cuts to the state library system, which were softened somewhat by lawmakers, and why President Donald Trump signed an executive order gutting the Institute for Museum and Library Services, or IMLS.

“Maybe they think it’s a waste of funds, maybe they don’t see the importance or they say, ‘People don’t use the library anymore,’” she said. “I just assume they haven’t been to a library in a long time so they don’t know what’s actually going on here.”

Trump said that the order “continues the reduction in the elements of the federal bureaucracy that the President has determined are unnecessary.”

The State Library Association has advised its members that the status of current grants remains unclear. If the administration follows the same playbook it has in targeting other small agencies for closure, IMLS could be shut down.

The agency provides more than $200 million a year to library systems across the country, including $1.3 million to South Dakota.

Jones-Lutter said the modern library in a small city like Redfield, population 2,200, has morphed from a quiet, solemn place existing mainly to check out books into what she said is more of a “community center.” People of all ages and all walks of life can have a no-cost or low-cost, safe place to spend time and access materials while learning, growing and interacting with other members of their community.

“We talk about the so-called third place, which is important,” she said. “It’s when you have a home and your work or school, but you need a third place to go and experience things. And the library can be that place.”

South Dakota library limits access as federal cuts loom

The South Dakota State Library falls within the purview of the state Department of Education, and both are located in the McKay office building in Pierre.

In an interview with News Watch on April 11, state Education Secretary Joseph Graves said he is monitoring the possible federal cuts to the state library, but he added that “we don’t really know what’s going to happen.”

On April 14, the state library closed its doors to the public, except for pre-arranged appointments, DOE spokeswoman Nancy Van Der Weide told News Watch in an email, citing state cuts, not those proposed by Trump.

While lawmakers held back from enacting all of Noem’s proposed cuts, they did ultimately reduce funding of the state library by about $800,000 and eliminated four staff positions.

“The culling and review of collections and materials is not related to federal funding concerns, it is a result of changes made during this year’s legislative session,” Van Der Weide wrote. “We are aware of no decision on IMLS funding for next year. Given that funding cuts are possible, we are holding off on approving contracts for services typically funded by IMLS dollars.”

Federal archival documents housed by the state library are being transferred to the University of Minnesota, which made a request to hold the materials, she said. Other materials will be held in the McKay Building, transferred to the state archives or shipped to local, school or university libraries that will accept them.

Van Der Weide added, “The State Library will continue to provide services such as the summer reading program, Braille and talking book activities and technical assistance to public libraries and schools.”

Graves said his understanding was that the federal IMLS office had lost all its employees to the ongoing federal job and program cuts. And yet, despite the proposed state and federal funding cuts, Graves said he does not think libraries in South Dakota and the U.S. are being targeted by state or federal officials.

“It’s not an attack, it’s just the latest challenge facing us all,” Graves said. “Everything with libraries is changing, and so many resources are now online, so libraries are changing their mission and asking, ‘How do we move forward in this new world?’”

Bringing people together in Redfield

Jones-Lutter, 34, has a degree in library science and is the only full-time employee at the Redfield library. The library’s roughly $220,000 annual budget is funded by local taxpayers, but she said that like almost all public libraries, programs and materials in Redfield are supported by a hodgepodge of donations, in-kind services and help from the South Dakota State Library.

Any cuts to the state system will hurt local libraries that rely on state offerings of information services or material sharing systems, she said.

“We’re talking about cuts to summer reading, inter-library loan and the databases used by libraries and schools,” she said. “I mean, you can’t balance the state or federal budget by cutting libraries.”

The Redfield library, located in a historic brick building, has been in operation since 1902 and is one of the few remaining South Dakota libraries first launched by industrialist Andrew Carnegie.

In addition to lending out books, offering free Wi-Fi and access to public computers, the Redfield library offers a long list of programs for children and adults.

More than 100 children attend preschool learning programs, summer reading programs or a Lego-based construction club to learn mechanics.

“A lot of these are free activities your child can come to,” she said. “How many free things are out there where your children can come on their own to read and learn and have a lot of fun?”

Adults can attend a book club, and homebound individuals can get materials delivered to them on a weekly basis.

Jones-Lutter uses her own money to buy coffee and “blondie” bars or cookies to serve to adult patrons who attend a monthly book club called “Sweet Reads.”

Sharon Eldeen, 81, has been a regular user of the Redfield library since she moved to town in 1968 and calls the library a “stupendous resource.” She takes pride also in the fact that some of her watercolor paintings are displayed on the library walls.

Eldeen and a handful of other women sat at a rectangular oak table in the library on April 10 and talked about books and other topics during the most recent “Sweet Reads” gathering.

Eldeen said it would be heartbreaking if the library in Redfield or in other South Dakota cities and towns were to lose funding that helps support activities and personnel. “We’d be lost without our local library,” she said.

Library like a local ‘coffee shop’

On a recent weekday, Cynthia Charest, 65, used a computer in the Mitchell Public Library to gain free access to the internet to catch up on the news. Charest said she would “grieve” if her local library or others across the state underwent budget cuts that led to reduced services or limited access to books and technology.

Charest said she started visiting her local library as a child and has made it a part of her life wherever she has lived. “It really increased my love for reading and it got me into writing,” she said.

Charest said she has watched as public libraries have evolved over the years from quiet places to read and check out books to vibrant settings where people can chat, learn, expand their minds and find new friends.

“It’s great for parents with children. And for elderly people, we can become isolated, so this provides a place to be part of a community,” she said. “Really, the library for me has become more of a coffee shop these days.”

Responding to community needs

Kevin Kenkel has served as director of the Mitchell Public Library for the past five years. Patron activity has increased over that time, except during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, he said. Circulation of materials and visitor counts have surpassed pre-pandemic levels during the past two years.

Library story time events that include reading aloud and a crafting session attract up to 50 people every Thursday and on alternating Saturdays. That high level of attendance, Kenkel said, is evidence that reading remains important to local families and that the library is still seen as a place where that skill can be developed.

“It helps with literacy and language acquisition,” he said. “It’s a critical part of language development in children, and adults for that matter.”

But Kenkel notes that the library in Mitchell has become more responsive to the needs of the community. After hearing from patrons, the library purchased dozens of board games that can be checked out and now lends out a telescope for home use. Some libraries have begun offering power tools to be checked out for home improvement projects, Kenkel said.

Local taxpayers provide the Mitchell library with almost all of its $900,000 annual budget that supports seven full-time and six part-time employees, he said.

Kenkel publishes a quarterly report called “Between the Pages” to update the community on library happenings, new arrivals and other news. In the spring 2025 edition, he informed the public about the proposed federal cuts and listed 10 ways that reductions in IMLS funding would restrict services.

Dozens of online databases would no longer be available to schools and libraries, he said, and cuts could reduce offerings of inter-library lending services, summer reading program offerings and the ability to bring in speakers to share important information with the community.

Kenkel also is concerned that the full state library funding cuts proposed by Noem this year could be revived during next year’s legislative session.

Any funding cut at the state or federal level to the state library would require local libraries to ask for more taxpayer money or to reduce offerings if local replacement money isn’t available, Kenkel said.

“All libraries in South Dakota benefit from the state library receiving federal funds, so we would lose out on access to those databases and other services,” he said.

 

AT LEAST $134 MILLION IN FEDERAL FUNDS FOR CONSERVATION IN SOUTH DAKOTA STILL IN LIMBO

SOUTH DAKOTA (Joshua Haiar / South Dakota Searchlight) – At least $134 million in federal conservation funds approved by Congress and awarded for conservation-related projects across South Dakota were frozen in the early days of the Trump administration.

A recent court order could put the money back in circulation, but the administration has yet to signal if it will fully comply. U.S. District Judge Mary McElroy of Rhode Island, who was nominated by President Donald Trump in 2019 during his first term in office, ordered the administration to release the funding last week.

The following day, the administration filed notice that it intends to comply with the nationwide order. On Sunday, however, the organizations that sued over the funding freeze filed their own notice, saying that the grant funds “remain inaccessible” even after McElroy’s order.

Angela Ehlers is the executive director of the South Dakota Association of Conservation Districts. Her organziation is not a party to the lawsuit, but has been awarded some of the funds now in dispute and works closely with other grantees affected by the executive order.

The money flowed through the Inflation Reduction Act, and were paused under direction from the U.S. Department of Agriculture after a Jan. 20 executive order from President Trump. The Inflation Reduction Act was authorized by Congress and signed into law under former President Joe Biden in 2022.

Ehlers said there’s been no clear sign of if or when they’ll be restored since the Jan. 20 0rder, which has been a frustration for those relying on them.

“These aren’t regulatory programs,” Ehlers emphasized. “They’re voluntary, and the fact that they’ve been frozen without explanation creates a chilling effect across the entire landscape.”

The pause impacted billions in conservation spending nationwide and sparked the lawsuit that led to last week’s order from Judge McElroy. Projects designed to support beginning farmers have also stalled.

Ehlers said her association had partnered with South Dakota State University to support young producers entering agriculture through sheep and goat production. The grant-funded effort is meant to offer a way into agriculture for young producers but doubles as a conservation measure, because sheep and goat production requires less land and capital than cattle or grain farming.

“There’s a real opportunity here,” Ehlers said, but added “we just don’t know” if the grant funding will continue.

Leaders in water quality and habitat restoration programming along the Big Sioux River are in  a similar wait-and-see scenario.

Most watershed project funding remains available, according to Jay Gilbertson, manager of the East Dakota Water Development District. But staff losses and hiring freezes have undercut the delivery of on-the-ground support.

“Even if you don’t reduce the program funding, who’s going to do the work?” Gilbertson said. “If you fire someone who’s approving payments or working directly with farmers, it creates a massive gap in capacity.”

Travis Entenman, director of Northern Prairies Land Trust and Friends of the Big Sioux River, said the downstream impacts of federal uncertainty are already reaching local landowners. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), which helps farmers and ranchers integrate conservation into their operations, has seen funding pauses, he said. That’s left some landowners without reimbursement for practices they installed on the promise of repayment.

“Some of it’s open, but there’s still money frozen,” Entenman said. “And these programs are often receipt-based, meaning landowners put their own money on the line expecting reimbursement.”

Frozen conservation funds in limbo:

$51 million in climate-smart agriculture projects:

$25 million to Ducks Unlimited to restore 25,000 acres of grassland and help ranchers better manage grazing.

$18.3 million to South Dakota Agricultural Land Trust to offer easement payments to conserve 8,000 acres of ranchland near the Black Hills.

$8 million to South Dakota State University to help farmers identify unprofitable acres and suggest better land uses.

$83 million in grassland and conservation grants:

$24 million to Pheasants Forever & Quail Forever to use prescribed fire to remove invasive Eastern red cedar trees and restore prairie grasses on up to 125,000 acres.

$21 million to InterTribal Buffalo Council to restore native grassland ecosystems using sustainable buffalo grazing practices across tribal lands.

$20 million to The Nature Conservancy to purchase voluntary conservation easements on 20,000 acres in western South Dakota to prevent development.

$11 million to South Dakota Second Century Habitat Fund to convert low-quality cropland into grasslands suitable for grazing and haying.

$5 million to The Buffalo Nations Grasslands Alliance to identify and restore marginal croplands across 16 tribal nations.

$1.2 million to The Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate to create a tool to measure the environmental impact of agriculture on the reservation.

 

SOUTH DAKOTA LEADS U.S. HEMP INDUSTRY, BUT USDA REPORT SHOWS TEXAS IS GAINING GROUND

SOUTH DAKOTA (Joshua Haiar / South Dakota Searchlight) – South Dakota continued to expand its industrial hemp footprint in 2024 as Texas quickly gained ground, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Hemp Report.

As defined in the 2018 Farm Bill, the term “hemp” is a cannabis plant with a no more than 0.3% concentration of the chemical that results in a high, known as THC.

According to the report, which was released on Thursday, South Dakota farmers planted 3,900 acres of hemp – a 22% increase from 2023. They harvested 3,700 acres, up 27.6%. Most of that growth came from hemp grown for fiber, a product for which South Dakota reigns as the nation’s top supplier.

Texas farmers planted 4,900 acres, a 1,860% increase from last year. Only 1,500 acres of that was harvested, though.

Former Democratic state lawmaker Oren Lesmeister, a rancher from Parade, championed the bills that created South Dakota’s hemp industry. He now serves on the South Dakota Industrial Hemp Association’s board of directors. He said Texas’ numbers mean little if farmers do not have a place to process their hemp.

“We’re kicking a– and taking names when it comes to production and processing,” Lesmeister said.

South Dakota leads the nation in hemp processing and the production of hemp fiber, according to the report.

There were 13.6 million pounds of hemp harvested for fiber in South Dakota last year. That’s a 14% decrease, even as the number of acres harvested,  3,550, increased by 22%. Every harvested pound was processed, according to the report. About 23% of the 59 million pounds of hemp processed in the U.S. was processed in South Dakota.

The mismatch between pounds harvested and acres planted is the result of lower per-acre yields for farmers. The average yield in the state dropped sharply by 30% in 2024, to 3,840 pounds per acre. Despite that, the value of South Dakota’s fiber hemp climbed to $3.54 million, a 50% year-over-year increase, buoyed by a 73% rise in price per pound.

Governor Larry Rhoden trumpeted the news in a statement sent to South Dakota Searchlight. He said rules and regulations that the USDA has implemented in recent years have allowed for the hemp industry to thrive in South Dakota “while ensuring the health and public safety of our residents.”

“Ag is king in South Dakota, and we are encouraged that our fiber-focused hemp industry continues to lead the nation,” he said.