PIERRE, S.D. (KCCR) – A bill introduced Thursday in the South Dakota Senate could make it easier for juvenile or developmentally disabled crime victims and witnesses to testify in court. Hughes County States Attorney Roxanne Hammond says she tried to get a certified therapy dog to testify alongside a child sex abuse victim in a… Read more »

BROOKINGS, S.D. (KJJQ) – A bill to establish a needs-based scholarship for South Dakotans who attend a university in the state has been introduced. Brookings Representative Tim Reed says this year’s Dakota’s Promise bill has been introduced as an Appropriations Committee bill. Reed says it will come down to available dollars. And there are nearby… Read more »

PIERRE, S.D. (WNAX) – A bill dealing with early education will surface in the 2020 South Dakota legislature. Representative Erin Healy of Sioux Falls is the sponsor. Healy says the bill will be different than last years version. Healy says they will use information that has already been collected. The state does not fund pre-k… Read more »

ABERDEEN, S.D. (HubCityRadio.com) – The Aberdeen Area Arts Council presents the Jami Lynn Trio in concert on Saturday, Feb. 8. The event takes place at 7 p.m. at the Aberdeen Recreation and Cultural Center Library Auditorium. Stacy Braun (Brown), Executive Director of the Arts Council, talked about the concert. She said that Lynn has a… Read more »

ABERDEEN, S.D. (HubCityRadio.com) – Aberdeen Mayor Travis Schaunaman will give a State of the City Address on Thursday, Feb. 6 during the Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce’s Community Affairs Luncheon. The event starts at noon at the Best Western Ramkota. Cost is $15 for chamber members, and $20 for non-chamber members.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D (AP) – A South Dakota State Penitentiary inmate serving life in prison for first-degree murder for a fatal shooting more than 25 years ago has died. The state Department of Corrections says David Stansbury died Saturday at the penitentiary. He was 68 and was serving a life sentence from Minnehaha County. The… Read more »

FORT PIERRE, S.D. (DRG News) – Stanley County’s Gross Domestic Product grew 111% from 2008 to 2018—doubling in the past decade. Governor’s Office of Economic Development Community Development Representative Scott Amundson says Stanley County had the 7th highest growth rate of all 66 counties in the state. Amundson says Fort Pierre and Stanley County showed… Read more »

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) – South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem is pushing a streamlined permitting process for feedlots, other agriculture projects and energy development. The Republican governor announced a bill that would establish statewide protocols for the permitting process for counties and make it more difficult to appeal zoning decisions. She said it would bring “consistency… Read more »

PIERRE, S.D. (WNAX) – South Dakota lawmakers are taking a long weekend and will return to Pierre Tuesday. All bills are supposed to be introduced by the end of this week. Senate Majority Leader Kris Langer of Dell Rapids says she will introduce what she calls a “STEP” bill. Langer says its to give consumers… Read more »

OMAHA, Neb. (WNAX) – The January Creighton University Mid-America Business Conditions Index, a leading economic indicator for the nine-state region stretching from Minnesota and the Dakotas to Arkansas, moved above growth neutral for a second straight month. Ernie Goss, director of Creighton University’s Economic Forecasting Group, says they saw good growth. Goss says job trends… Read more »

PIERRE, S.D. (DRG News) – The South Dakota stripe has been added to a national flag project commemorating the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment which gave women the right to vote. Her Flag project founder and Oklahoma artist Marilyn Artus wanted to celebrate the important milestone in American history. Artus says Vermillion artist Klaire… Read more »

PIERRE, S.D. (WNAX) – With another year of record tourism numbers behind them, South Dakota Tourism Department Secretary Jim Hagen says he believes they can top that. Numbers released at last week’s Tourism Conference showed visitor numbers hit 14.5 million, a 3.1 percent increase and visitor spending was up just under three percent to $4.1… Read more »

YANKTON, S.D. (WNAX) – Senator Craig Kennedy of Yankton has introduced a bill that would change the penalties for illegal drug use. Kennedy says current laws don’t do a good job of helping people with a drug problem. Kennedy says there are multiple impacts from that severe of a penalty. Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg has… Read more »

YANKTON, S.D. (WNAX) – The U.S. Census Bureau is ready to roll out the forms for the 2020 headcount. Blanca Ramirez-Salazar, Partnership Coordinator for the Upper Plains States, says they plan to get a census form to every address and mailbox. There has been concern that many rural residents and those on Indian reservations may… Read more »

TYNDALL, S.D. (Press Release) – One person died early Sunday morning in a one-vehicle crash south of Tyndall. The name of the decease is not being released pending notification of family members. A 1994 Chevy 1500 pickup was northbound on South Dakota Highway 37 when it went into the east ditch and rolled. The 60-year-old… Read more »