Latest news with #HouseBill1025
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Jackley targets $525 million for prison spending
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — South Dakota's top law enforcement officer, who sits on a task force examining where to recommend putting a new men's prison, is sharing the kind of price tag he wants to see: a cost that's notably different from a previous guaranteed maximum price as well as a fraction of what a recent consultant report recommends. Oglala Sioux Tribe sends measles alert after case in border county In February, South Dakota lawmakers voted down House Bill 1025, which would have appropriated money to build a new 1,512 men's prison in Lincoln County with a guaranteed maximum price of $825 million. The failure paved the way for Project Prison Reset and the consultant report which includes a recommendation to build a 1,728-bed replacement for the current penitentiary. The report also recommends building an additional prison or prisons and adding beds to the Sioux Falls Minimum Center. Per the report, this could all cost up to $2.1 billion. South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley, who sits on the task force, is targeting a price that's notably lower. 'I think there are several proposals out there,' Jackley said Tuesday. 'The ones that I'm more interested in fall in that $525 million range, 'cause again, for me this is about protecting not just the public, but the taxpayers.' That cost, Jackley says, would still pay for 1,500 beds. At the task force's most recent meeting, the group unanimously voiced approval to replace the current penitentiary. Still on Gov. Larry Rhoden's to-do list for the group is figuring out how big this facility should be and where it should go. 'We've got two meetings left before a special session,' Minnehaha County State's Attorney Daniel Haggar said Tuesday. 'I think it's important for us to address those questions that the governor has tasked us with. There's going to be a lot of conversation, and we've seen things can move slowly. They can also move quickly.' Haggar is also on the task force. As of Tuesday, he hasn't landed on a specific location. 'I'm not quite there yet,' Haggar said. 'I haven't ruled anything out.' As for Jackley, he says locations already within the Department of Corrections' orbit are possible. 'It could be utilizing existing facilities, and when I say utilizing existing facilities, that's Jameson, that's the Hill, that's Springfield,' Jackley said. 'It's areas that already exist so you don't have some of the community pushback.' The task force's next meeting is June 3 in Pierre. Eventually, the plan is for a special session of the state legislature to learn on July 22 about the group's recommendations. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Recommendations for SD DOC could cost $2.1 billion
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — A consultant report released Thursday on the future of corrections in South Dakota includes recommendations with a total price tag that could reach $2.1 billion. The report recommends building a 1,728-bed replacement for the current state penitentiary in Sioux Falls. Additionally, it advocates for building either two more prisons with 768 beds apiece or another single facility comparable in size to the penitentiary's replacement. Waves crash over gates at Gavins Point on windy day The report also recommends adding 300 beds to the Sioux Falls Minimum Center, which is set up for lower-risk inmates. Cumulatively, per the report, these costs 'are expected to be between $1.9 to $2.1 billion.' The 81-page report cost the state $729,322. It critically assesses the state's correctional system, stating 'facilities are overcrowded, have low staff-to-inmate ratios, do not conform to modern correctional practices, and are growing faster than solutions can be put in place.' The report describe the current state penitentiary overlooking central Sioux Falls as a lost cause, writing that it has no hope of ever satisfying building codes, safety requirements or Americans with Disabilities Act standards. It also says the penitentiary comes well short of having enough room for recreation or education, stating that it 'is well below modern program space recommendations.' Just as Project Prison Reset's task force unanimously voted in April, the consultant report says the current penitentiary should be replaced. The report specifies that the penitentiary's replacement should be built as quickly as possible in Sioux Falls or less than 30 minutes away. Project Prison Reset's task force will next meet June 3 in Pierre, with a special session of the state legislature set to learn about the group's recommendations in July. Rhoden launched the task force in the wake of the legislative failure of House Bill 1025, which would have appropriated money to build a new men's prison in Lincoln County between Harrisburg and Canton with a guaranteed maximum price of $825 million. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Task force unanimously recommends replacing SD State Pen
SPRINGFIELD, S.D. (KELO) — A sunny day in southern South Dakota welcomed members of Project Prison Reset's task force to Springfield, where the group sat down and made a decision Tuesday: unanimously voicing their approval to replace the current South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls. 'We really haven't had an opportunity to talk about what we saw on the hill,' said Minnehaha County Sheriff Mike Milstead, who serves on the task force. 'And I know that's coming after the consultant's report, but I don't need a consultant to tell me that the place is a pit. And it's a horrible place to work. I would not let my son or daughter work in the state prison on the hill. I would not.' Documents reveal details on theft of Noem's purse The task force is also looking at the size and location of a new prison. Back in late February, South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden listed those matters as the second and third questions Project Prison Reset had to answer after deciding if a new prison is even warranted. 'We are going to have a harder time with number two because of the financial aspect of it, and number three, the location of it, because of the politics,' said South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley, who is also on the task force. With regard to location, the governor's office has received several submissions, so far all in eastern South Dakota. At the moment, nine possible locations are in the Sioux Falls area, including the long-considered Lincoln County site between Harrisburg and Canton. Other possible spots are in the Huron, Aberdeen, Mitchell and Big Stone City communities. None of the potential sites were picked or eliminated Tuesday; the questions of the size of a new men's prison and where it could be located will wait for another day. The task force's next meeting is scheduled for June 3 in Pierre, and after that, another meeting is set for July 8 in Sioux Falls. Eventually, the plan is for a special session of the state legislature to learn about the group's recommendations in late July. House Bill 1025 during South Dakota's 2025 legislative session would have originally appropriated money to build a new men's prison in Lincoln County, but the House gutted the bill before voting it down. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Nuclear energy research gets green light in North Dakota
The Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant in Monticello, Minnesota. Used nuclear fuel rods are seen by some as a potential energy source in North Dakota. (Photo provided by Xcel Energy) The North Dakota Legislature is opening the door for nuclear energy research in the state. The House of Representatives on Wednesday passed Senate Bill 2159 to allow the Energy and Environmental Research Center in Grand Forks to study nuclear energy. The House passed the EERC bill 57-32. The bill previously passed the Senate 45-2. The bill returns to the Senate after being amended by the House. Advocates of nuclear research said North Dakota should not fall behind amid a resurgence of interest in nuclear energy. 'We need to be a part of the conversation,' said Rep. Jon Nelson, R-Rugby. Nelson represents an area where the U.S. Department of Energy proposed drilling an exploratory borehole to test the stability of the rock for nuclear waste storage. After that proposal, North Dakota lawmakers sought to clarify the law related to high-level radioactive waste storage. A group of concerned citizens pushed for language in a bill approved in 2019 that prohibits 'the placement, storage, exploration, testing, or disposal of high-level radioactive waste' in North Dakota. The EERC research bill could lead to above-ground storage. Some opponents said they feared the bill could allow unwanted radioactive nuclear waste into the state. Nelson disagreed. 'We do not want to become a dumping ground,' Nelson said. 'I think the protections are there.' The protections include an amendment that the state Industrial Commission, in consultation with the state's High-Level Radioactive Waste Advisory Council, must approve any nuclear research that EERC proposes to do. The EERC is designated as the State Energy Research Center with oversight by the Industrial Commission. EERC submitted testimony in support of the bill. The EERC research bill was sponsored by Senate Majority Leader David Hogue, R-Minot, who chaired the Energy Development and Transmission Committee that examined the possibilities for nuclear energy between legislative sessions. North Dakota eyes next-generation nuclear as replacement for coal plants Rep. Todd Porter, R-Mandan, pointed to a former coal plant in Wyoming that is being converted into a small nuclear facility as an example of competition from other states that are reusing spent nuclear fuel rods. Porter suggested that nuclear fuel rods at the nuclear power plant in Monticello, Minnesota, could be used in North Dakota, but he said the research needs to be done first. 'Allow EERC to do the job that they're supposed to be doing for the people of North Dakota … advancing the all-of-the-above energy portfolio that we asked them to do,' Porter said. The House also passed House Bill 1025 that calls for a legislative study of the potential for nuclear power plants in North Dakota. Rep. Jared Hendrix, R-Fargo, argued for waiting for results of the study before authorizing nuclear research. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
What lawmakers hope to see prison task force accomplish
LENNOX, S.D. (KELO) — A task force will determine the next steps for the proposed men's prison. It consists of people on both sides of the debate who will work through the need, location and size of the building. House Bill 1025 would have allocated funds to build a new men's prison in Lincoln County. But, after the bill took a big hit last Friday, Governor Larry Rhoden announced Project Prison Reset. Representatives Karla Lems and Richard Vasgaard each have ideas on what they'd like to see the task force accomplish. Both represent parts of Lincoln, Turner and Union counties. They shared those thoughts, along with other legislative topics, at a public event in Lennox on Saturday morning. 'I think everybody's really concerned about the ongoing cost of running that 1,500 bed prison, in addition to all of our other incarceration spots that we have across the state,' Rep. Lems said. Lems is one of eight House members on the task force. She's concerned about the ongoing cost that comes with operating a new prison rather than just its initial construction price. Wildfire near Hot Springs prompts evacuation preparations 'For us to get to that, I think the next step is we're going to have to come together and make some changes,' Rep. Lems said. Rep. Vasgaard said he'd like to see more public input through the process. 'We all kind of agree that we need to do something. We need to replace our old prison, and we are overcrowding our prison facilities, and we do need to do something,' Rep. Vasgaard said. But coming to a consensus could be the challenge. 'A lot of issues are going to have to be answered,' Rep. Vasgaard said. 'Can they do that in the short amount of time by July? I don't know. It'll be interesting to see, but that's going to be up to them.' The group's first meeting is scheduled for April 2nd. Governor Rhoden's executive order states the task force will meet no less than four times before July's special session. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
