On Friday, February 19, we learned Moody’s has upgraded South Dakota’s lease-revenue bond rating to Aa1. This is great news for South Dakota. Aa1 is the highest rating South Dakota can receive from Moody’s. It is equivalent to the AAA rating we received from Standard & Poor’s last spring. It... Read more

PIERRE, S.D. – Gov. Dennis Daugaard today signed into law Senate Bill 13, a bill to establish a new retirement benefit structure for future public employees who are members of the South Dakota Retirement System. “South Dakota’s Retirement System is consistently among the best-funded retirement systems in the nation,”... Read more

Under the South Dakota Constitution, the governor is “responsible for the faithful execution of the law.” This is not something I take lightly. In my second term I have been especially focused on executing new reforms passed by our legislators – and not simply executing but executing well. Without... Read more

This week, the legislative session reached its half-way point. Legislators are working hard as they consider bills on a wide range of topics. Education funding is a major topic of discussion this year. At the beginning of session, I offered a plan to increase teacher pay and to reform the school... Read more

PIERRE, S.D. – The South Dakota Legislative Research Council has officially filed Gov. Dennis Daugaard’s education reform bills which are now online for the public to view. “South Dakotans want us to be bold,” said Gov. Daugaard. “They are tired of hearing how South Dakota is 51st in teacher pay.... Read more

When thinking about South Dakota, naval prowess might not be the first thing to come to mind. Still, our state has a strong and proud naval history – from the men and women who have answered the call to serve to the ships that have borne the name USS... Read more

Over the last several years, various states have been considering pension reform to address funding shortfalls. Some have looked at increasing employee contributions. Others have considered raising their retirement age or lowering benefits. Pennsylvania is now attempting to deal with $50 billion in unfunded pension obligations and a funded... Read more

PIERRE, S.D. – Gov. Dennis Daugaard announced today that he will appoint Catherine Duenwald chief hearing examiner. Duenwald is currently general counsel for the Bureau of Administration. “Catherine has served the bureau well and will continue to do so in her new role as the chief hearing examiner,” said BOA... Read more

The 2016 Legislative Session began this week. This year, I am proposing that South Dakota address the issue of teacher pay. We all know that the key to student achievement is an effective teacher.  We also know that South Dakota’s teacher salaries are lowest in the nation and have... Read more