PIERRE, S.D. (Makenzie Huber, South Dakota Searchlight) – A state office said Thursday that a petition seeking to reinstate abortion rights has enough valid signatures to make the Nov. 5 ballot, but opponents have already promised a legal challenge.
Based on a random sample of signatures, the South Dakota Secretary of State’s Office estimated that 85% percent of the nearly 55,000 signatures on the petition are from South Dakota registered voters, which means the estimated number of valid signatures is 46,098. The petition needed 35,017 to qualify for the election.
The proposed state constitutional amendment would legalize abortions in the first trimester of pregnancy but allow the state to impose limited regulations in the second trimester and a ban in the third trimester, with exceptions for the life and health of the mother. Abortions are currently banned in the state, except to “preserve the life of the pregnant female.”
Opponents have 30 days to challenge the validity of the petition. Leslee Unruh, co-chair of the Life Defense Fund, said earlier this month that the group “can’t wait to get to court.” The Life Defense Fund is a ballot question committee organized to oppose the ballot measure.
Thursday, Unruh and Life Defense Fund co-chair Rep. John Hansen, R-Dell Rapids, issued a joint statement: “This fight is about saving the lives of countless unborn children in our state. We are grateful to the many dedicated volunteers who have put in countless hours, and we are resolute in our mission to defend unborn babies. We will continue to research these signatures and announce a challenge at the appropriate time.”
Opponents of the ballot measure have alleged some petition signers were duped into believing they were signing a petition to repeal the state sales tax on groceries, when they were actually signing the abortion-rights petition. The Dakotans for Health ballot question committee circulated both measures and denies any wrongdoing.
Hansen recently formed the South Dakota Petition Integrity political action committee. People associated with the committee have been calling hundreds of petition signers from the sample list, as part of an effort to gather evidence for a court challenge and tell signers about a new state law passed in March allowing them to withdraw their signature.
Complaints about the calls led to a press release from the Secretary of State’s Office earlier this week labeling the calls a “scam,” due to callers allegedly giving the impression that they’re officially affiliated with the Secretary of State’s Office.
Rick Weiland, of Dakotans for Health, said earlier this week that the phone campaign was a sign of “desperation.”
“They are desperate to keep abortion off the ballot this fall and let the people decide,” Weiland said.
The abortion measure could be one of many on the ballot in November. Two measures already on the ballot were placed there by the Legislature: a proposal to change male-specific officeholder references in the state constitution to neutral language, and a proposal that would allow the state to impose work requirements on some Medicaid expansion enrollees.
Validated but within the 30-day challenge window are the abortion measure and an initiated measure prohibiting state sales taxes on items sold for human consumption, specifically targeting state sales taxes on groceries.
Validation is pending for citizen-led petitions that would create open primary elections and legalize adult recreational marijuana use.
Meanwhile, a citizen-led group is trying to refer a new pipeline law to the ballot. The Legislature passed the law last winter to implement new protections for landowners affected by a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline, while still allowing a regulatory path forward for the project
PIERRE S.D. – Travel South Dakota is partnering with the U.S. Travel Association and communities across the state to celebrate National Travel and Tourism Week (NTTW), May 19-25, 2024.
NTTW recognizes the industry’s role in keeping our communities vibrant while acknowledging that travel serves as a local & global economic driver that provides workforce opportunities.
There are plenty of reasons to celebrate NTTW this year. In 2023, South Dakota welcomed 14.7 million visitors. These visitors spent 4.96 billion dollars. This surpasses all previous records, which continues to prove the South Dakota tourism industry’s tenacity and resiliency.
The tourism industry remains essential to South Dakota’s economy, providing an indispensable source of job creation and household income to thousands. 57,835 jobs in South Dakota were supported by the tourism industry, which generated 2.2 billion dollars of income for those families.
“Our industry is a cornerstone of the state’s economy. We look forward to seeing how tourism continues to positively impact our state in the years ahead,” said James Hagen, Secretary of the South Dakota Department of Tourism. “I am so proud of our remarkable industry and the positive benefits it brings to every resident.”
Throughout NTTW, South Dakota landmarks will be lit red, the official color of the tourism industry. Landmarks set to be lit red include:
Children’s Museum of South Dakota, Brookings
McCrory Gardens, Brookings
Crazy Horse Memorial, Crazy Horse (one night only: May 20, dusk – 10 pm)
The CCC Museum and Melvin Hermanson Statue, Hill City
The Hill City Area Chamber and Visitor Information Center, Hill City
Jewel of the West, Hill City
The Mammoth Site, Hot Springs
The World’s Only Corn Palace, Mitchell
Main Street Square, Rapid City
The Monument, Rapid City
Arc of Dreams, Sioux Falls
Denny Sanford PREMIER Center, Sioux Falls
Falls Park, Sioux Falls
Largest TV in SD, Great Shots, Sioux Falls
Washington Pavilion, Sioux Falls
The Buffalo Chip, Sturgis
Rush-No-More Campground, Sturgis
DakotaDome, Vermillion
Sanford Coyote Sports Center, Vermillion
Created by Congress in 1983, National Travel and Tourism Week is an annual acknowledgment of the impact of travel on states, regions, cities, and the entire United States. During the first full week in May each year, communities nationwide unite to showcase the impact of travel.
For more information on National Travel & Tourism Week in South Dakota, see SDVisit.com.
The South Dakota Department of Tourism is comprised of Travel South Dakota and the South Dakota Arts Council. The Department is led by Secretary James D. Hagen.
LEAD, S.D. (Seth Tupper, South Dakota Searchlight) – Gold production was up and silver production was way up last year at South Dakota’s only active large-scale gold mine, according to new numbers reviewed Thursday by a state board.
Chicago-based Coeur Mining owns the Wharf Mine, near Terry Peak and the city of Lead in the northern Black Hills. Gold production at the mine increased by 17% to 93,502 ounces last year, and silver production increased by 481% to 267,786 ounces.
Matt Zietlow is Coeur’s environmental manager at Wharf. He told South Dakota Searchlight there was no intentional reason for the silver production spike.
“It’s really just random,” he said. “It’s the metallurgy of the ore.”
Silver is a “nice co-product” of gold, he added, but “you can actually get too much of a good thing where the silver can outcompete the gold sometimes.”
The increased gold production helped the mine generate $82 million in annual free cash flow, defined by the company as cash from operating activities minus capital expenditures. It was the mine’s highest-ever amount in that category, according to Coeur’s annual report. The company’s sales of minerals mined at Wharf totaled $189.5 million in 2023.
The mine began operations in 1982 and has produced more than 3 million total ounces of gold. It has disturbed about 1,300 acres, including 11 new acres last year. About 350 acres have been fully or partially restored to a natural-looking state, in a process known as reclamation.
Wharf is an open-pit mine that uses the heap-leach method of mineral extraction. Ore is crushed, piled on giant pads and treated with a cyanide solution to leach out the precious metals.
Coeur stripped away 9.4 million tons of earth last year at Wharf to uncover 4.9 million tons of ore, yielding the combined 361,288 ounces of gold and silver.
The mine paid $6.3 million in gold severance taxes to the state last year, employed 245 people and had a payroll of $32 million. It gave $212,000 to local community groups, schools, athletic programs and charities.
Zietlow presented the figures Thursday during an annual report to the state’s Board of Minerals and Environment.
“A good, solid, safe year for us overall at Wharf,” Zietlow told the board. “Very proud of that.”
Coeur operates additional mines in Nevada, Alaska and Mexico.
WINNEBAGO, NE (Deborah Van Fleet / Nebraska News Connection) – Workforce watchers project the country could face critical worker shortages in many of the skilled trades in coming years.
The Nebraska Winnebago Tribe is taking a proactive approach to the issue. Its apprenticeship program helps high school juniors and seniors learn skills while helping the community build its skilled workforce. It is a collaboration between Ho-Chunk, Inc., Winnebago High School, the Winnebago Tribe Education Department and local businesses.
Willy Bass, manager of community impact and engagement for Ho-Chunk, Inc., said tribal leaders realized they needed programs for their youth who might not pursue higher education.
“This program was intended to get students interested, and a foot in the door, in the fields of construction, IT, nursing, education, etc.,” Bass outlined. “Any of those sort of technical-related careers.”
Bass explained the students earn credits for spending two hours at their worksite four days a week. On Fridays, they learn “soft skills,” such as resume building, interviewing and the importance of a good attitude and good attendance. In the latest Harris Poll, more than 80% of employers reported many of their youngest workers lack these important soft skills.
Bass pointed out one of the tribe’s priorities is ensuring its members have job opportunities. He noted some apprenticeship graduates choose to start working right after high school, while others pursue further training in their apprenticeship field.
“We want our kids to go off, get educated and come back and contribute to the tribe and make it a better place, and for them to be successful,” Bass emphasized. “If they want to contribute those skills on a broader scale in other communities, they have that support system.”
Kamau Turner, superintendent of Winnebago Public Schools, said they plan to build upon the program in the future. He hopes students interested in a skilled trade will eventually be able to graduate from high school fully certified, which would be a boon for the Winnebago community.
“I have to call a plumber from Sioux City; I have to call an electrician from Sioux City,” Turner observed. “Our community is growing, our school is growing, and there’ll be more of those people needed. Jobs will have to grow as the community grows.”
Winnebago’s population has increased 30% in the past eight years.
