Are we Paying $800 million to Import 1500 Violent Criminals into SD?

Why wasn't there full disclosure about the prison location, costs, and impact?

It appears that the 1512 person maximum security prison that is slated for the Sioux Falls Metro Area is unnecessary unless the State of South Dakota has a massive crime wave or we start importing violent criminals.

Here are the details:

• We have less than 200 maximum security prisoners in the State of South Dakota now.

• We have capacity for 576 maximum security prisoners right now and facilities that can be easily expanded to accommodate more prisoners.

• That means we have excess capacity to incarcerate at least another 376 maximum security prisoners now.

• Only about 6% of the prisoners require maximum security, so we have plenty of space for maximum security prisoners well into the future.

• The new facility that is slated for Lincoln County would house 1512 inmates. Initially Department of Corrections Head, Wasko, said the facility was for maximum security inmates. After some questioning, she is now saying the facility is for a mixed security population.

• This new prison is expected to cost over $800 million to construct with significant additional costs for sewage, roads, bridges, etc. Some people suggest that the cost could be close to $1 billion.

• We have not been given information on the long term operational or maintenance costs or the retirement obligations the state would face for the administrative staff, guards, management, etc. that would be employed by the prison.

• Nebraska is in the process of constructing a prison of similar size for a fraction of the cost.

Information from an interview with Doug Weber, former Chief Warden and Director of Adult Corrections

Prison jobs are not highly sought after assignments and South Dakota has a very low unemployment rate. As a result, there is no reason we would need to welcome a prison to boost employment opportunities, especially in the Sioux Falls Metro area.

Since there does not appear to have been much disclosure about the need, location, or cost, one has to wonder what is really going on. Is it possible a group of connected people thought they could make money off a prison in Lincoln County and lobbied behind the scenes to make it happen since the state has land there?

Why was it okay to move forward with an $800 million construction project, commit large sums of money for sewage infrastructure and transportation upgrades, and commit tens of millions more toward long term maintenance and employee retirement obligations, when only a fraction of that money has been allocated by the legislature (2023, 2024)? Why wasn’t there more transparency on the site location and why weren’t the citizens queried before a site decision was made?

Then why did things degrade to the point the City of Harrisburg denied the prison water connection permits and the State of South Dakota had to use taxpayer funds to defend itself against a citizen group (yes, the citizens were being sued by “themselves”). It is also strange that the State began demolition on the site without a permit from Lincoln County.

At this point, the taxpayers are already at gunpoint. If the state backs out of the contracts, the taxpayer is on the hook for penalties. If the state moves forward, they create long term societal and financial issues, depress property values, etc.

It is almost always better to take the short term hit rather than make decisions that lead to long term disaster. As a result, I am hopeful the Legislature will refuse to approve the prison’s funding.