Author: @SoDakCampaigns

5 Things to Know About the $1.50 Tax Amendment

In Brief: In 2026, voters could see a measure that would replace most local property taxes with a retail transaction fee

By Todd Epp, Northern Plains News – Aug 20

South Dakota voters could face, on the November 2026 ballot, an initiated constitutional amendment from Mike Mueller, former state Sen. Julie Frye-Mueller, and Matt Smith that would replace most local property taxes with a new retail transaction fee — $1.50 on purchases of $15 or more, and ten percent on purchases under $15 — and create a state “property tax replacement fund” to reimburse schools, counties, and cities.

The LRC’s August 2025 review says the measure would affect state and local finances and requires a fiscal impact statement; it also flags single-subject risks. Sponsors say the goal is to ease the property-tax burden; if voters approve, the Legislature would have to build the collection and distribution system.

1. What does the amendment do?
It would replace local property taxes with a new $1.50 fee on retail purchases of $15 or more, and a 10 percent fee on purchases under $15.

2. Who is behind it?
Sponsors include Rep. Mike Mueller and fomer state Sen. Julie Frye-Mueller of Rapid City, and activist Matt Smith. They argue property taxes are unfair because they continue after a mortgage is paid off.

3. How would it affect schools and counties?
The Legislative Research Council warns the measure could cause major revenue shortfalls for schools, counties, and cities. Lawmakers would need to rebuild the state’s entire tax system to make up the difference. That’s according to the Legislative Research Council’s August 2025 review memo.

4. What are the main criticisms?
Governor Larry Rhoden and groups such as Americans for Prosperity say the plan is regressive, hitting low-income residents hardest. Economists also warn it would destabilize funding for local services.

5. What happens next?
Backers will collect signatures to place the measure on the 2026 ballot. If it qualifies, voters will decide whether to replace property taxes with the new purchase-based tax system.

2026 CA Mueller Lrc Comments by Pat Powers

From Facebook, it appears that Marty Jackley had a well attended fundraiser last night:

The facebook post is available here.

Organizers were very happy, noting it was a “Massive event for Jackley. Over 200 host couples and many more non-hosts.” One of them noted “I’ve been working on campaigns for 30 years and I’ve never been to a bigger fundraiser. It is also the first time we’ve ever had to move to a larger venue to handle the crowd size. Pretty sure this is a new record.”

I’m sure organizers are pleased that this will provide solid seed money for the campaign effort to kick off as we move into a more active campaign. We’ll know final totals for Marty’s 1st quarter of campaigning in the 3rd quarter FEC report, which we’ll see in mid-October.

 

South Dakota Searchlight went on the hard attack this morning in an editorial from Dana Hess, accusing Governor Rhoden for “running a shadow reelection campaign through his open for opportunity tour.”

Since mid-March, the governor has been running a shadow reelection campaign through his Open for Opportunity Tour. 

and..

An unscientific search of state news releases found that since March 17 Rhoden has made 17 Open for Opportunity trips to 25 communities. From Sioux Falls to the Standing Rock Reservation, from Mud Butte to Mitchell, from Box Elder to Huron, Rhoden is getting to know the business leaders in each community as well as fattening his Rolodex. 

and..

While South Dakota is Open for Opportunity, one of those opportunities has been for Rhoden to run a political campaign using state funds. In essence, the governor is using an office he wasn’t elected to as a means to jumpstart a campaign he hasn’t announced yet. Now that’s quite an opportunity. 

Read the entire Editorial here.

I’ve said it many times – the Governor is literally the state’s biggest cheerleader for business and growth. If he isn’t out telling our state’s story, who IS supposed to do it?

Former Senator and Minority Whip John McIntyre has passed away, according to an obituary posted by the Miller funeral home in Sioux Falls. The District 12 Democrat was 94. According to the obituary:

John R. McIntyre, a cherished resident of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, peacefully passed away on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, at Ava’s Hospice House, surrounded by his loving family. He was 94 years old.

and..

John served on numerous boards and committees, including the SDEA Board of Directors and as President of the South Dakota Counseling Association. He was also the President of his local chapter of “Phi Delta Kappa” and the Regional Director for the American Counseling Association. His selfless contributions were recognized with the “Marvin Kemp Award” for service to the state of South Dakota and the Sioux Falls Education “Human and Civil Rights” award. His commitment to his community was evident as he served on the church council, taught at Axtell Park Middle School, and represented his constituents in the South Dakota Legislature for four years, both in the House and the Senate.

Read that here.

As noted by the Legislative Research Council as taken from the Blue Book..

You can read his historical entry here.

Big shout out to Hayley (Halverson) Johnson being featured at siouxfalls.business website as an up and comer in the Sioux Falls community. Hayley has been with the Dusty Johnson campaign for a while, and many know her father, State Representative Jim Halverson:

North Dakota is in the news today, being congratulated for it’s business friendly climate.  If only …

Applied Digital plans to break ground in September on what it calls Polaris Forge 2, a 280-megawatt artificial intelligence computing center. 

The plan calls for two facilities with room for expansion. Applied Digital has contracted more than 900 acres for its campus and secured power through Cass County Electric Cooperative, a member-owned nonprofit. The data center is expected to employ more than 200 full-time workers plus long-term contractors.

and..

Applied Digital said in a news release that it is expanding in North Dakota because the state has abundant energy, available land and a pro-business climate.

Read that here.

If South Dakota could focus on an business climate, maybe we could get the tax relief that so many who are running for office want – and it could come through GROWTH. Instead of the NIMBY-ism that seems to have afflicted too many who want to be in charge..

Luckily, there are still some real Republicans left who champion growth. But we need more of them. For all our sakes.

Governor Rhoden announces more advancements for Operation: Prairie Thunder

PIERRE, S.D. – Today, Governor Larry Rhoden and Operation: Prairie Thunder secured more advancements to keep South Dakotans safe. South Dakota National Guard (SDNG) guardsmen began their work in support of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and the Department of Corrections (DOC) secured its 287(g) agreement with ICE.

“We continue to take great strides in our mission to keep South Dakota strong, safe, and free,” said Governor Larry Rhoden. “All of the departments and agencies involved in Operation: Prairie Thunder are making progress on their missions. I am confident that their efforts will lead to a safer future for our communities.”

Seven SDNG guardsmen officially began their work to assist ICE with administrative functions. Three guardsmen are assigned to the Sioux Falls ICE office, three are assigned to the Rapid City office, and one will serve as a liaison for the service members to all external agencies. Their support will enable ICE agents to spend more time on the streets working to keep America safe.

Governor Rhoden also secured another 287(g) Memorandum of Agreement for South Dakota, this time between the DOC and ICE under the Jail Enforcement Model. This agreement enables DOC to work with ICE to deport offenders, transfer violent offenders for federal incarceration, and assist ICE with transporting illegal alien criminals. Governor Rhoden previously signed a letter of intent to enter into this agreement. You can find the executed agreement here.

Operation: Prairie Thunder is a comprehensive, targeted public safety initiative to protect South Dakotans. Operation: Prairie Thunder includes two main initiatives:

• A targeted anti-crime initiative in the Sioux Falls metro to interdict drugs, investigate gang activity, hold parole absconders accountable, and deter lawlessness; and
• A comprehensive effort to support the work of ICE secure our borders and deport illegal alien criminals.

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From Facebook, South Dakota homeschool group FAIR-SD has come out and reiterated that they are firmly against any government funding of homeschooling:

As per the statement contained on their their website:

FAIRSD Stands Firmly Opposed to Government Funding of Alternative Instruction in South Dakota

At first glance, “school choice” legislation can sound appealing. Promises of “funding students instead of systems” and “empowering parents” are easy to like. But behind the catchy slogans, these bills often contain a catch that should alarm every homeschooling family: government money always comes with government strings.

When lawmakers offer taxpayer funds to homeschoolers, whether through Education Savings Accounts (ESAs), vouchers, or other programs, they also gain the power to decide how that money is spent. Once a family accepts those funds, the government has a justification to set rules, create oversight mechanisms, and mandate curriculum, testing, teacher qualifications, or reporting requirements. This is not hypothetical. It’s a well-established pattern in education policy: funding and regulation go hand in hand.

For homeschoolers, this means that programs sold as “optional” today can become the justification for regulating all homeschoolers tomorrow. Once homeschoolers are defined in law as recipients of public education funds, even indirectly, it becomes much easier for legislators to argue that all homeschoolers should be held to the same standards as government-funded students.

We’ve seen this progression in other states. At first, participation in a funding program is voluntary. Over time, eligibility rules change, requirements expand, and oversight increases. Families who never took a dime can still end up subject to new laws written in the name of “accountability.” The distinction between publicly funded and privately funded homeschooling becomes blurred, and eventually, erased altogether.

Homeschooling thrives precisely because parents, not the government, are in charge. Accepting public money compromises that independence. No matter how small the initial “strings” appear, they open the door for more regulation later.

FAIRSD’s position is simple: we oppose all forms of “school choice” legislation that include homeschoolers as eligible recipients of taxpayer funds. The safest way to protect homeschooling freedom is to keep education funding and homeschooling completely separate. Homeschoolers have fought for decades to maintain the right to direct our children’s education without government interference. We cannot afford to trade that hard-won freedom for short-term financial incentives.

True educational freedom means saying “no” to funding that comes at the cost of control. For the sake of our children’s future and the independence of home education, we must keep homeschoolers entirely outside the scope of government funding.

Read that here.

Former Representative Fred Deutsch has a campaign website set up in case you would like to support his candidacy:

Remember, one of the reasons Fred is running is so you have an option to support a candidate who has not signed a pledge to shoot down planes because of chemtrails (If you recall my July 6 post):

I believe Fred referred to it as kooky, wrong and dangerous.

You can click to donate to Fred here.

Attorney General Jackley Announces Five Men Arrested In ICAC Child Exploitation Operation at Sturgis Rally

 PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announces five men were arrested during a child exploitation operation conducted by the South Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force during the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

“This operation resulted in the arrest of five adults in our communities for attempting to engage in sexual activity with minors,” said Attorney General Jackley. “Thank you to the local, state and federal agencies that work each day to protect our children.”

The ICAC Task Force, which is part of the Attorney General’s Office, worked in partnership with the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), the Rapid City Police Department, the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Marshals Service. The operation was conducted Aug. 1 through Aug. 6.

Four men were separately arrested on federal charges while attempting to meet with a person who they believed to be a 14-year-old girl for the purposes of engaging in sexual activity. They will be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The defendants are:

*** Elmer James Hopper, 36, Rapid City—charged with Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet.

*** Beau James Remington, 23, Black Hawk—charged with Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet and Attempted Transfer of Obscene Material to a Minor.

*** Jayson “Javi” Gomez, 30, Rapid City—charged with Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet.

*** Joshua Michael Allen, 36, Hermosa—charged with Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet.

Another defendant was arrested on state charges for solicitation of a person he believed to be a 14-year-old girl to engage in prohibited sexual acts. He will be prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office. He is:

*** Jackson Wolfgang Witte, 36, Summerset – charged with Solicitation of a Minor and Attempted Manufacture of Child Pornography.

The defendants are presumed innocent under the U.S. Constitution.

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