"Sadly, the politicians don’t appear to be listening." - Have you ever noticed that when politicians fear their constituents, they listen? Unless the oaths taken in SD by politicians are drastically different, they are sworn to SERVE their constituents, and until the people of SD get riled more so than you great post here, then the politicians will let the power they THINK they have go to their head. Time to remind them of the delusion they are living in... Until then, same old, same old.
I've worked as a consultant to corporations in 26 states, and the SD legislature has their strategy butt BACKWARD. Yeah, sorry about the foul temper. I don't even live in SD yet, but something like this irks the you-know-what-liquid out of me.
"It is still confusing to me ... why the state and communities continue to support this wealth transfer." Taxes belong to the people, NOT the politicians, to give to corporations - and I doubt a single SD citizen would do so. Yes, the corporations are given incentives by the States, but ONLY incentives that reduce the corporation's tax burden; they are not given tax dollars anywhere I have been (though Newsom has been trying to do this in CA - I thought midwesterners didn't like this sort of sh-tuff???).
Corporations should pay SD for the privilege of operating in the State in the form of new jobs, services, and products without accepting any money from the State—and they do so in every state I worked in. What the heck is wrong with the craniums of those in the legislature? Oh, wait. They don't fear their constituents.
...you are close.... Its not that they don't listen...most are incredibly stupid. I was in the legislature only 2 years and was amazed at the idiocy. Bills were never read...legislators couldn't read legalize so they relied on caucus to get a thumbs up or thumbs down on the bills being voted on for that day. They carried pre-fab bills that originated in the George Soros camp or "Council". Any working group that our politicians go to (example, National council of State legislators, Western Attorney Generals, Legislative Research Council, National Governors Assn) have legislation there waiting for them to push or carry to their state. Just google parts of current bills and you will see that they are being pushed in MANY states at the same time.
None of the legislators had a working knowledge of the US or SD constitutions. They lied to their constituents with ease because as I was threateningly told, "Nobody cares how you vote up here...no one even knows!" I either vote the fraternity wants and wishes or I was blackballed. My very first caucus instruction was, "what goes on in Caucus STAYS in caucus....to the snickers of power-hungry incumbents and newbies as well. Solution? One is the get the capitol out of Pierre, a God-forsaken place in the middle of nowhere where NO one goes to hear legislation being pushed. Another is to have full time legislators and get rid of the agencies that write the bills regardless of pubic opinion. Cut 90% of "Staff" and make the legislators actually do the work ...but pay them as well as you do the state cronies.
Remember, 2016 the SD voters passed Measure 22, "South Dakota Accountability and Anti-Corruption Act" it passed by SD voters. Wait for it.... in 2017 SD Legislature repealed IM-22 and Gov Dennis Daugaard signed it into law. Everyone of the legislatures who voted for this should be sent to live on the streets of SanFrancisco CA. They mocked democracy, ignored the will of the people to ensure they could make sure the graft continued.
You're right getting over to Pierre is not an option for most people who care about SD, what pisses me off is what the hell is the matter with the folks we elected?
Why tell me why must we go there and cudgel the folks we elected to do what's expected? Trust me a few are working for 'free' that~13k a session is not incentive.
Prefab bills from George Soros camp! That must be a horrible weight on SD legislators how many Democrats are in the entire legislature? 90ish percent Republican best blame someone besides Democrats and George Soros.
Jim, all due respect to you, do realize in the SD legislation realm, R or D is a bit of a joke, R or D next to ones name in SD gov is not taken seriously until proved you actually give a damn what the constituency says.
Damn right there's a lot of out-of-state influence pending going on in SD.
Now that the people know about it, what are they going to do about it?? Something only exists because it is permitted to exist.. If the people do not take up an advocacy that threatens their politicians, then SD will turn Blue REAL quick... And from my desk, if there is no action by the people them I'm thinking twice about moving there.
The most impressive things about South Dakota is the people and its citizen leaders. When the people decide there is a problem they work together to get it solved. Recently they have tackled a number of complicated issues by forming non-partisan coalitions - pushing back against a big business eminent domain effort, running out California style elections (Amendment H), and cleaning up elections, .... Perhaps corporate welfare will be next.
Obviously, I missed all that, and thank you for sharing - nothing triggers me more than people complaining and doing nothing about it, it exists because it is being permitted to exist. We have a large cemetery in Virgina with 400,000+ heroes who protected our right to be able to do such a thing and I'm not about to let them go without honor.
I happen to be a registered Republican but actually a RINO BY today’s standards. It is not the crazy left (CA) influence it is the crazy Right that has me leaning RINO, Concealed carry on college campuses, make in a felony for a librarian to check out a book to a minor that someone believes is objectionable….. I could go on bit those two are enough to choke me.
Most city and county politicans seek out of state consultants before starting most projects or bring a project to the voters. City, county, and state hire and pay the consultants, tell what they are seeking, and 99% of the time the reports come back in favor of the those hiring the consultants.
Then when presented to the voters and it fails, theyy go back or find a different firm, show them the results of the vote and rewrite the proposals. I have watched it with different projects in my comunity in the last 10 years. Yhe last one just got voted in after 10 years of trying and 3 different votes with 3 different consultants.
I don't blame a consulting firm, you are not going to slap the hand of the one feeding you. My question is why not first go to those that elected you and get a feel for what the community wants, not what the elected want. But of course we will set back, complain about the firm, complain about the elected official, and next election we for them again, either because of the party or name recognition.
Sounds like a wise idea. I just notice a bill that allows the PUC to charge someone a minimum of $20K for review. I don't know any of the details, but one might wonder if it is to eliminate the individuals and small players from the process.
Haven't read all the comments here yet, so apologies for any redundancy here - Not that I had to tell you this, he scenario you paint is SERIOUSLY flawed, it is more like a dart game with the people's money instead of going TO the people directly (they don't hold town halls often? If they do it sounds like the do not do this often enough). Our country is in a battle on every level right now, which means EVERY state is as well, and thankfully, SD is no NY; the outcomes stemming from the lack of judgement, character, fortitude, decisiveness, and back bone could be just as drastic on the people of SD as they would in NY. There are only 4 things that lead every endeavor I undertake - prayer, the Bible, the Constitution of the state I live in, and our Constitution. I used to think that having a civics exam for candidates was a laughable idea - the results I have seen and experienced with politicians have kept me from laughing for more than a decade.
It has been established by more than one research review that 90%+ of ALL politicians are bought, hence corrupt, and the people's matters are not very well known by them - they are only now getting the message that We the People are ROYALLY pissed about it all. Thanks to them, we how give a damn now have 2 places of work - our paying job then our political job. Groups are forming everywhere and meeting on the internet, chats, Telegram, WhatsApp, email newsletters, substacks, blogs, podcasts, and God know where else to collaborate ideas into action. Without action, we can talk, debate, argue all we want, but all we are doing is letting our inactions tell the politicians we are no threat, just noise...
When your taxes jump about 40% in one year you know there is something in Pierre. But once again the media fails to tell the whole story, so people are not aware of what is going on. I hope the new governor gets his head out of the dark hole and sees what the people of this state need to be informed of. Too many legislators fail to communicate with their people in their districts, and that is not good. Citi bank used up their bennys and moved on to greener pastures. And we did’t learn from that either. People are too easily brainwashed by fast talkers and politicians not enforcing the will of the majority of the public.
We need another round of housecleaning in the next election. The last round of primaries left a lot of Republican elder states(wo)men scratching their heads and wondering what happened. We need to do it some more and put these spendthrifts on notice. And yes, that includes Governor Rhoden.
South Dakota Voices Response: Vicky, thank you for joining the conversation. Perhaps you could provide a little more clarity on who you are referencing. All the people who participate in the blog?
Email comment from VS: "Who are you fu**ing people."
our state is such a cluster **. Property taxes are astronomical and our only people that understand the fight are Lora Hubbel and her small group. I was hoping that shoving noem off on Trump would free us from her soft tyranny and usher in a MAGA / DOGE type administration
Other peoples money is easy to spend, just watch our elected officials blow it on what they think are good ideas, look at the actual cost to tax payers. I'm using the legislatures poster child, Mitchell SD as highlighted by SD Voices.
Category TaxpayerCost (USD) Notes
State Grant (GOED) 2,000,000 Direct grant for High Plains Processing plant, confirmed.
Local “Move to Mitchell” (City Portion) 12,000 Estimated from MADC’s city-funded share, speculative without full budget.
Local Infrastructure (Estimated) 1,000,000 Assumed for road extensions, not publicly detailed.
Sales Tax Refund (Estimated) 2,250,000 Potential refund on equipment, based on 10% of $500M investment, unconfirmed.
Property Tax Abatement (10 Years) 46,500,000 Opportunity cost, included for completeness, not direct expenditure.
Since High Plains Processing is a LLC they are not required to disclose political donations, it is a owned by SDSP SD soy processors, farmer-owned 2,200 members mostly from SD I can find any political activity.
The litmus test is, if it is a good idea use your own damn money to invest in your idea, caveat exceptions where a project will benefit the taxpayers who are funding it, let us vote on it.
Congratulations to Lora Hubble I ALWAYS put more stock in a person’s comment when they are willing to put their name with it. I don’t always agree but I am more likely to respect them.
Congratulations. South Dakota Voices has simply become an echo chamber for people who believe in conspiracy theories and data that supports their beliefs.
Thank you for the question, Edward. Economic development is the future of our great state. We want and need investment to build industry and keep jobs in South Dakota. If incentives are the difference between a company building here or in another state, why wouldn’t we encourage their use? Our state’s biggest challenge right now is actually FINDING enough people to work. Historically low unemployment is costing us further development. First generation Americans are not suppressing wages in SD. They are actually working in jobs others are reluctant to take and as a result, helping drive the economy. As a proud member of the GOP, I continue to be amazed that a faction of our party seems to be focused on the exact opposite of market economics and building long-term wealth.
Honesty is important. The whole "finding enough people to work" is a deceptive argument. If the salaries were not depressed there would be lines of people waiting to take the jobs. The reason companies put forth this rhetoric is so they can request foreign workers to depress wages.
Also, if we are close to full employment it seems that the only point of the economic development is to lower wages and increase the tax burden on the citizens. Right now the taxpayers bear the full burden of the foreign workers (subsidized food, subsidized housing, subsidized transportation, extra public education costs, etc.) and the foreign workers also lower the overall wages of workers in the state. Honestly, it seems a bit evil, because it is deceptive and the goal is to make the company more profitable and the people worse off.
Sadly, all the economic reporting systems are a scam right now. For example, if you don't have a job and you have stopped looking you are considered employed. Same crazy deceptive reporting with inflation (reported inflation around 2.5% per year since 1997, actual 9.5% per year since 1997). If we really have full employment why are we doing any economic development. We don't need it and the citizens would be better off keeping their tax dollars so they can get out of debt.
Most of us don't get any benefit from this corporate welfare other than higher taxes and depressed wages. Can you assure us none of these companies that are using our money are employing foreign workers/refugees? If so, are they paying the extra costs for public education, subsidized housing, subsidized food, public transportation, indigent medical care, wage depression. A salary of $50K 1997 is the same as $233K today. Are companies paying these wages?
The building of soy processing plants have an economic justification, mostly in part due to shipping soy beans is costly and processed soy products are more profitable to ship. My point is they would have built the one in Aberdeen and Mitchell without the taxpayers footing the bills.
Finding enough people to work or paying a living wage? You know that SD wages suck, who in their right mind would move here for a pay cut? The backroom deals to get new arrivals in SD is apparent, the Uniparty is all in on it..... 'it's good for business, don't those voters know what's good cheaper products....?' Yeah, right screwing over the goose that lays the golden egg, we taxpayers. Long term wealth for whom?
The fact that you are amazed of the 'faction' in the state GOP proves a lot, you're unaware, of pretty much everything.
The GOP sucks, I've become independent, especially the SD GOP is crap, every cycle we get someone who is OWNED by corrupted leadership installed in SD to do the bidding of others not traditional conservative South Dakotans.
I'm proud to be a South Dakotan, proud to be traditional and Conservative, not proud of SD GOP.
Thank you, Edward. I’d like to consider myself aware, informed, and fully engaged. I am now retired but spent my entire career in the private sector working to improve our communities and all of SD for our children and grandchildren.
The lens you and many other Republicans view SD through isn't clear.
I left SD for decades, living in other states and a few different countries. Honestly coming back to SD after many decades gave me depression and disappointment.
The same 'ol same 'ol stagnant life, nothing innovative, little value added.
Other than SF and Rapid City grow is stagnant. Honestly, the growth that both SF and Rapid have and are experiencing, wrong stuff, I don't want it. There are huge criminal elements there, not being dealt with either.
SD wages won't attract or keep my children here, there's little incentive to offset the freezing winters.
I see cronyism has been operating for years, good'ol boys nexus, you see it is obvious, a tree is known by its fruit.
Personal attacks seem to be par for the course with you, Vince. Not a single thing I said was a lie. It may be different than your opinion, but that does not make it a lie.
You wrote, "Our state’s biggest challenge right now is actually FINDING enough people to work." If that's the case, it looks like we don't need an economic development agency. You would be redundant. The market is doing your job much more efficiently than you. But of course, if you lose your job sucking off the taxpayers teat, how will you survive?
When I moved to a rural town here for the good of my family, what surprised me was the how poor the 'townie' families were, versus the 'farm' kids. Without a subsidized farm income, no amount of commuting, lower priced housing or lack of income tax could make up the difference.
Maybe now, income levels have leveled making all families in rural South Dakota, poor.
Check out the "economic development" that towns often promote. The big problem is the wage depression (foreign workers) which takes a lot of people who wouldn't be in poverty into poverty.
Taxes are only good for politicians, I cannot afford them. The money I earn is my money, not theirs, no matter what bleeding heart lies are told to get it. If I want my money to go to some specific thing then I will give it. We need to go back to the concept of selling bonds to fund anything. It way past time for people to start paying attention and start voting.
"Sadly, the politicians don’t appear to be listening." - Have you ever noticed that when politicians fear their constituents, they listen? Unless the oaths taken in SD by politicians are drastically different, they are sworn to SERVE their constituents, and until the people of SD get riled more so than you great post here, then the politicians will let the power they THINK they have go to their head. Time to remind them of the delusion they are living in... Until then, same old, same old.
I've worked as a consultant to corporations in 26 states, and the SD legislature has their strategy butt BACKWARD. Yeah, sorry about the foul temper. I don't even live in SD yet, but something like this irks the you-know-what-liquid out of me.
"It is still confusing to me ... why the state and communities continue to support this wealth transfer." Taxes belong to the people, NOT the politicians, to give to corporations - and I doubt a single SD citizen would do so. Yes, the corporations are given incentives by the States, but ONLY incentives that reduce the corporation's tax burden; they are not given tax dollars anywhere I have been (though Newsom has been trying to do this in CA - I thought midwesterners didn't like this sort of sh-tuff???).
Corporations should pay SD for the privilege of operating in the State in the form of new jobs, services, and products without accepting any money from the State—and they do so in every state I worked in. What the heck is wrong with the craniums of those in the legislature? Oh, wait. They don't fear their constituents.
Noticing a pattern here??
...you are close.... Its not that they don't listen...most are incredibly stupid. I was in the legislature only 2 years and was amazed at the idiocy. Bills were never read...legislators couldn't read legalize so they relied on caucus to get a thumbs up or thumbs down on the bills being voted on for that day. They carried pre-fab bills that originated in the George Soros camp or "Council". Any working group that our politicians go to (example, National council of State legislators, Western Attorney Generals, Legislative Research Council, National Governors Assn) have legislation there waiting for them to push or carry to their state. Just google parts of current bills and you will see that they are being pushed in MANY states at the same time.
None of the legislators had a working knowledge of the US or SD constitutions. They lied to their constituents with ease because as I was threateningly told, "Nobody cares how you vote up here...no one even knows!" I either vote the fraternity wants and wishes or I was blackballed. My very first caucus instruction was, "what goes on in Caucus STAYS in caucus....to the snickers of power-hungry incumbents and newbies as well. Solution? One is the get the capitol out of Pierre, a God-forsaken place in the middle of nowhere where NO one goes to hear legislation being pushed. Another is to have full time legislators and get rid of the agencies that write the bills regardless of pubic opinion. Cut 90% of "Staff" and make the legislators actually do the work ...but pay them as well as you do the state cronies.
Remember, 2016 the SD voters passed Measure 22, "South Dakota Accountability and Anti-Corruption Act" it passed by SD voters. Wait for it.... in 2017 SD Legislature repealed IM-22 and Gov Dennis Daugaard signed it into law. Everyone of the legislatures who voted for this should be sent to live on the streets of SanFrancisco CA. They mocked democracy, ignored the will of the people to ensure they could make sure the graft continued.
You're right getting over to Pierre is not an option for most people who care about SD, what pisses me off is what the hell is the matter with the folks we elected?
Why tell me why must we go there and cudgel the folks we elected to do what's expected? Trust me a few are working for 'free' that~13k a session is not incentive.
Prefab bills from George Soros camp! That must be a horrible weight on SD legislators how many Democrats are in the entire legislature? 90ish percent Republican best blame someone besides Democrats and George Soros.
Sadly, there is bad cookie cutter legislation coming from a wide range of outside groups (supposedly left, supposedly right).
Left or right, it's not in our interest but someone else who can capitalize on midwest nice.
Jim, all due respect to you, do realize in the SD legislation realm, R or D is a bit of a joke, R or D next to ones name in SD gov is not taken seriously until proved you actually give a damn what the constituency says.
Damn right there's a lot of out-of-state influence pending going on in SD.
Now that the people know about it, what are they going to do about it?? Something only exists because it is permitted to exist.. If the people do not take up an advocacy that threatens their politicians, then SD will turn Blue REAL quick... And from my desk, if there is no action by the people them I'm thinking twice about moving there.
The most impressive things about South Dakota is the people and its citizen leaders. When the people decide there is a problem they work together to get it solved. Recently they have tackled a number of complicated issues by forming non-partisan coalitions - pushing back against a big business eminent domain effort, running out California style elections (Amendment H), and cleaning up elections, .... Perhaps corporate welfare will be next.
Obviously, I missed all that, and thank you for sharing - nothing triggers me more than people complaining and doing nothing about it, it exists because it is being permitted to exist. We have a large cemetery in Virgina with 400,000+ heroes who protected our right to be able to do such a thing and I'm not about to let them go without honor.
I happen to be a registered Republican but actually a RINO BY today’s standards. It is not the crazy left (CA) influence it is the crazy Right that has me leaning RINO, Concealed carry on college campuses, make in a felony for a librarian to check out a book to a minor that someone believes is objectionable….. I could go on bit those two are enough to choke me.
Most city and county politicans seek out of state consultants before starting most projects or bring a project to the voters. City, county, and state hire and pay the consultants, tell what they are seeking, and 99% of the time the reports come back in favor of the those hiring the consultants.
Then when presented to the voters and it fails, theyy go back or find a different firm, show them the results of the vote and rewrite the proposals. I have watched it with different projects in my comunity in the last 10 years. Yhe last one just got voted in after 10 years of trying and 3 different votes with 3 different consultants.
I don't blame a consulting firm, you are not going to slap the hand of the one feeding you. My question is why not first go to those that elected you and get a feel for what the community wants, not what the elected want. But of course we will set back, complain about the firm, complain about the elected official, and next election we for them again, either because of the party or name recognition.
Sounds like a wise idea. I just notice a bill that allows the PUC to charge someone a minimum of $20K for review. I don't know any of the details, but one might wonder if it is to eliminate the individuals and small players from the process.
Haven't read all the comments here yet, so apologies for any redundancy here - Not that I had to tell you this, he scenario you paint is SERIOUSLY flawed, it is more like a dart game with the people's money instead of going TO the people directly (they don't hold town halls often? If they do it sounds like the do not do this often enough). Our country is in a battle on every level right now, which means EVERY state is as well, and thankfully, SD is no NY; the outcomes stemming from the lack of judgement, character, fortitude, decisiveness, and back bone could be just as drastic on the people of SD as they would in NY. There are only 4 things that lead every endeavor I undertake - prayer, the Bible, the Constitution of the state I live in, and our Constitution. I used to think that having a civics exam for candidates was a laughable idea - the results I have seen and experienced with politicians have kept me from laughing for more than a decade.
It has been established by more than one research review that 90%+ of ALL politicians are bought, hence corrupt, and the people's matters are not very well known by them - they are only now getting the message that We the People are ROYALLY pissed about it all. Thanks to them, we how give a damn now have 2 places of work - our paying job then our political job. Groups are forming everywhere and meeting on the internet, chats, Telegram, WhatsApp, email newsletters, substacks, blogs, podcasts, and God know where else to collaborate ideas into action. Without action, we can talk, debate, argue all we want, but all we are doing is letting our inactions tell the politicians we are no threat, just noise...
When your taxes jump about 40% in one year you know there is something in Pierre. But once again the media fails to tell the whole story, so people are not aware of what is going on. I hope the new governor gets his head out of the dark hole and sees what the people of this state need to be informed of. Too many legislators fail to communicate with their people in their districts, and that is not good. Citi bank used up their bennys and moved on to greener pastures. And we did’t learn from that either. People are too easily brainwashed by fast talkers and politicians not enforcing the will of the majority of the public.
We need another round of housecleaning in the next election. The last round of primaries left a lot of Republican elder states(wo)men scratching their heads and wondering what happened. We need to do it some more and put these spendthrifts on notice. And yes, that includes Governor Rhoden.
Agreed, and make damn sure Dusty is not our next Governor
South Dakota Voices Response: Vicky, thank you for joining the conversation. Perhaps you could provide a little more clarity on who you are referencing. All the people who participate in the blog?
Email comment from VS: "Who are you fu**ing people."
our state is such a cluster **. Property taxes are astronomical and our only people that understand the fight are Lora Hubbel and her small group. I was hoping that shoving noem off on Trump would free us from her soft tyranny and usher in a MAGA / DOGE type administration
Bottom line: money shifted and expenses to us went up.
Other peoples money is easy to spend, just watch our elected officials blow it on what they think are good ideas, look at the actual cost to tax payers. I'm using the legislatures poster child, Mitchell SD as highlighted by SD Voices.
Category TaxpayerCost (USD) Notes
State Grant (GOED) 2,000,000 Direct grant for High Plains Processing plant, confirmed.
Local “Move to Mitchell” (City Portion) 12,000 Estimated from MADC’s city-funded share, speculative without full budget.
Local Infrastructure (Estimated) 1,000,000 Assumed for road extensions, not publicly detailed.
Sales Tax Refund (Estimated) 2,250,000 Potential refund on equipment, based on 10% of $500M investment, unconfirmed.
Property Tax Abatement (10 Years) 46,500,000 Opportunity cost, included for completeness, not direct expenditure.
Since High Plains Processing is a LLC they are not required to disclose political donations, it is a owned by SDSP SD soy processors, farmer-owned 2,200 members mostly from SD I can find any political activity.
The litmus test is, if it is a good idea use your own damn money to invest in your idea, caveat exceptions where a project will benefit the taxpayers who are funding it, let us vote on it.
Congratulations to Lora Hubble I ALWAYS put more stock in a person’s comment when they are willing to put their name with it. I don’t always agree but I am more likely to respect them.
Congratulations. South Dakota Voices has simply become an echo chamber for people who believe in conspiracy theories and data that supports their beliefs.
What do you bring to the table, empty words and empty claims, congratulations on nothing, what have you got besides empty baseless comments?
Thank you for the question, Edward. Economic development is the future of our great state. We want and need investment to build industry and keep jobs in South Dakota. If incentives are the difference between a company building here or in another state, why wouldn’t we encourage their use? Our state’s biggest challenge right now is actually FINDING enough people to work. Historically low unemployment is costing us further development. First generation Americans are not suppressing wages in SD. They are actually working in jobs others are reluctant to take and as a result, helping drive the economy. As a proud member of the GOP, I continue to be amazed that a faction of our party seems to be focused on the exact opposite of market economics and building long-term wealth.
Honesty is important. The whole "finding enough people to work" is a deceptive argument. If the salaries were not depressed there would be lines of people waiting to take the jobs. The reason companies put forth this rhetoric is so they can request foreign workers to depress wages.
Please tell me how historically low unemployment is deceptive. The numbers are real. Why do you question my integrity? I’m not being dishonest.
Also, if we are close to full employment it seems that the only point of the economic development is to lower wages and increase the tax burden on the citizens. Right now the taxpayers bear the full burden of the foreign workers (subsidized food, subsidized housing, subsidized transportation, extra public education costs, etc.) and the foreign workers also lower the overall wages of workers in the state. Honestly, it seems a bit evil, because it is deceptive and the goal is to make the company more profitable and the people worse off.
Sadly, all the economic reporting systems are a scam right now. For example, if you don't have a job and you have stopped looking you are considered employed. Same crazy deceptive reporting with inflation (reported inflation around 2.5% per year since 1997, actual 9.5% per year since 1997). If we really have full employment why are we doing any economic development. We don't need it and the citizens would be better off keeping their tax dollars so they can get out of debt.
Most of us don't get any benefit from this corporate welfare other than higher taxes and depressed wages. Can you assure us none of these companies that are using our money are employing foreign workers/refugees? If so, are they paying the extra costs for public education, subsidized housing, subsidized food, public transportation, indigent medical care, wage depression. A salary of $50K 1997 is the same as $233K today. Are companies paying these wages?
Let's keep it real,
The building of soy processing plants have an economic justification, mostly in part due to shipping soy beans is costly and processed soy products are more profitable to ship. My point is they would have built the one in Aberdeen and Mitchell without the taxpayers footing the bills.
Finding enough people to work or paying a living wage? You know that SD wages suck, who in their right mind would move here for a pay cut? The backroom deals to get new arrivals in SD is apparent, the Uniparty is all in on it..... 'it's good for business, don't those voters know what's good cheaper products....?' Yeah, right screwing over the goose that lays the golden egg, we taxpayers. Long term wealth for whom?
The fact that you are amazed of the 'faction' in the state GOP proves a lot, you're unaware, of pretty much everything.
The GOP sucks, I've become independent, especially the SD GOP is crap, every cycle we get someone who is OWNED by corrupted leadership installed in SD to do the bidding of others not traditional conservative South Dakotans.
I'm proud to be a South Dakotan, proud to be traditional and Conservative, not proud of SD GOP.
Thank you, Edward. I’d like to consider myself aware, informed, and fully engaged. I am now retired but spent my entire career in the private sector working to improve our communities and all of SD for our children and grandchildren.
I'm not questioning your sincerity or intent.
The lens you and many other Republicans view SD through isn't clear.
I left SD for decades, living in other states and a few different countries. Honestly coming back to SD after many decades gave me depression and disappointment.
The same 'ol same 'ol stagnant life, nothing innovative, little value added.
Other than SF and Rapid City grow is stagnant. Honestly, the growth that both SF and Rapid have and are experiencing, wrong stuff, I don't want it. There are huge criminal elements there, not being dealt with either.
SD wages won't attract or keep my children here, there's little incentive to offset the freezing winters.
I see cronyism has been operating for years, good'ol boys nexus, you see it is obvious, a tree is known by its fruit.
my 2cents
Thank you. We are likely far more aligned philosophically than we know. Be well!
I don't believe I've ever read such a litany of lies! You must be employed by government as one of these "development" parasites?
Personal attacks seem to be par for the course with you, Vince. Not a single thing I said was a lie. It may be different than your opinion, but that does not make it a lie.
You wrote, "Our state’s biggest challenge right now is actually FINDING enough people to work." If that's the case, it looks like we don't need an economic development agency. You would be redundant. The market is doing your job much more efficiently than you. But of course, if you lose your job sucking off the taxpayers teat, how will you survive?
Who exactly are you referring to in this thread Vince?
When I moved to a rural town here for the good of my family, what surprised me was the how poor the 'townie' families were, versus the 'farm' kids. Without a subsidized farm income, no amount of commuting, lower priced housing or lack of income tax could make up the difference.
Maybe now, income levels have leveled making all families in rural South Dakota, poor.
Check out the "economic development" that towns often promote. The big problem is the wage depression (foreign workers) which takes a lot of people who wouldn't be in poverty into poverty.
👍
Taxes are only good for politicians, I cannot afford them. The money I earn is my money, not theirs, no matter what bleeding heart lies are told to get it. If I want my money to go to some specific thing then I will give it. We need to go back to the concept of selling bonds to fund anything. It way past time for people to start paying attention and start voting.