News

Legislative week number three was action packed and full of little reminders of the goodness of God in every aspect of life.

Week 3 of the 2026 Legislature I talked to one of the LRC bill writers this week. He said that he expected about 700+/- bills to be “dropped”. Our committee meetings are full every day of people to testify for or against a particular bill, and questions and discussions have been really thorough.

Week three of the Session is in the books and things are getting busy and bills are being dropped at a record pace. Last I checked with LRC staff, over 1000 bills have been drafted and the Committees are having bills flying into them. This is when it is tough to be a Chair.

Second grade students from Andes Central Elementary spent the month of January strengthening ties between their school and the local community through visits to Lake Andes Nursing Home. On January 14, Mrs. Deurmier and Mrs.

Recently my family had an unexpected (and unwanted) visitor in our house; the flu. For so many of us, this time of year is filled with sickness of all kinds. A piece of advice you commonly hear when you’re sick is, “go get some rest”.

The Southeast region of South Dakota has generated more in tourism revenue for the state than the Black Hills and Badlands for three consecutive years. Data from the Department of Tourism shows that the Southeast region generated $2 billion in revenue compared to $1.

SDSU Extension will host a free private applicator Zoom Webinar training focused on managing pests in rangelands on February 11th, 2026 from 1:30 - 4:30 p.m. CST at the 4-H Center, 1910 Birch St. Tyndall for new or existing applicators.

Wagner’s First grade celebrated the 100th day of school on Wednesday, January 28. They did fun math activities working with the number 100 and had a fun day celebrating with their classmates.

Week two picked up with more committee hearings and bills being heard. There are currently 254 bills and 19 resolutions filed. We have a lot of work to do. During my 1st term in the legislature, we passed a law banning hostile foreign ownership of ag land in South Dakota, which I proudly supported.