Latest South Dakota Headlines

All the headlines from our South Dakota Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Hub Acquires Assets of South Dakota’s First Western Insurance Agency

May 2 2019 // Chicago-based global insurance brokerage, Hub International Limited (Hub), has acquired the assets of First Western Insurance Agency Inc. in South Dakota. First Western Insurance Agency is an independent insurance agency...

Why the Missouri River Is Just Going to Keep On Flooding: Viewpoint

Apr 30 2019 // The Missouri River used to be out of control. “It cuts corners, runs around at nights, fills itself with snags and traveling sandbars, lunches on levees, and swallows islands and small villages for dessert,” is...

Bond Requirement Keeps South Dakota Race Tracks Closed This Year

Apr 12 2019 // There will be no horse racing this year at South Dakota tracks for the first time in decades. Aberdeen American News reports that Northeast Area Horse Racing announced Tuesday that the Aberdeen track will not host races in...

‘Bomb Cyclone’ Adds to Weather Woes in Central US

Apr 12 2019 // A storm system known as a “bomb cyclone” slowly churned through the U.S. interior Thursday for the second time in a month, unleashing a blizzard that struck the Upper Midwest and creating hazardous fire...

Governor Signs South Dakota Law That Targets Labeling of ‘Fake Meat’

Mar 26 2019 // Gov. Kristi Noem has signed legislation that requires “fake meat” products to be correctly labeled, hoping to reduce the impact of lab-cultured products on the local beef market. A product is misbranded if it...

Sturgis, South Dakota, Wants Rally Campgrounds to Pay Ambulance Service Fee

Feb 27 2019 // The city of Sturgis, South Dakota, wants campgrounds outside city limits to pay as much as $5,100 to secure ambulance service during this year’s Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. City manager Daniel Ainslie said last week...

Insurer, Credit Union Settle South Dakota Suit over Premium Hikes

Feb 13 2019 // Black Hills Federal Credit Union in South Dakota and a Wisconsin-based insurance company have agreed to pay $3 million to settle a class-action lawsuit claiming they improperly raised insurance premiums on thousands of...

Credit Ratings of South Dakota’s Northwest G.F. Mutual Insurance Upgraded

Feb 6 2019 // AM Best has upgraded the Financial Strength Rating to B++ (Good) from B+ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating to “bbb” from “bbb-” of Northwest G.F. Mutual Insurance Co. (NWGF), a small...

South Dakota Bill Would Bar Using Mobile Device While Driving

Feb 5 2019 // People would be mostly barred from using mobile devices while driving under proposed legislation in South Dakota. Under House Bill 1088, which was scheduled to be considered by the House Transportation Committee on Feb. 5,...

South Dakota’s Leavitt Recreation & Hospitality Adds Williams, Jones

Jan 22 2019 // Vance Williams and Mike Jones have joined Leavitt Recreation & Hospitality Insurance (LRHI) in Sturgis, S.D., the company reported. Both Williams and Jones will focus on commercial insurance for the recreational...

South Dakota Survey Shows Snapshot of Benefits Offered by Employers

Jan 21 2019 // A recent survey released by the South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation provides a glimpse at the employee benefits being offered to workers by the state’s employers. The Labor Market Information Center on...

Couple Sues City, Neighbor over Deadly South Dakota Fire

Jan 9 2019 // The parents of a 26-year-old woman killed in a fire at their home in Fairburn, South Dakota, filed a lawsuit against the small town and a neighbor, alleging a grass fire that sparked the deadly blaze was fueled by the...

South Dakota Researcher Helping to Develop Fire Risk Estimation Tool

Dec 17 2018 // South Dakota’s state fire meteorologist is part of a coalition using satellite technology to notify fire managers when fuels are abnormally dry. Darren Clabo, a research scientist and instructor at the South Dakota...

South Dakota Officials Concerned About Dakota Southern Track Defects

Nov 6 2018 // South Dakota officials have expressed concern about defects on the railroad operated by Dakota Southern Railway Company. A South Dakota legislative committee recently discussed an August inspection report conducted by the...

NTSB: Errors Led to Death of 2 BNSF Railroad Workers in South Dakota

Sep 10 2018 // A series of human errors led to a BNSF Railway train striking and killing two railroad workers in South Dakota last year, federal investigators said. The National Transportation Safety Board released its report on Sept. 6...

Newspaper: Sturgis Rally Traffic Deaths Likely Higher Than Official Count

Aug 20 2018 // A newspaper says the total number of traffic fatalities for this year’s Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota may be higher than the state’s official count of four. The Rapid City Journal counted at least...

Newspaper: Sturgis Rally Traffic Deaths Likely Higher Than Official Count

Aug 14 2018 // A newspaper says the total number of traffic fatalities for this year’s Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota may be higher than the state’s official count of four. The Rapid City Journal counted at least...

ReliaMax Dropped from Texas’ Eligible Surplus Lines List

Aug 6 2018 // Following its placement into liquidation by the South Dakota Division of Insurance in late June, the Texas Department of Insurance removed ReliaMax Surety Co. from the list of eligible surplus lines insurers in Texas, the...

South Dakota Moves to Liquidate Surety Insurer ReliaMax

Aug 6 2018 // ReliaMax Surety Co. has been placed into liquidation by the South Dakota Division of Insurance. The South Dakota DOI petitioned the Hughes County Circuit Court on June 12, 2018, to place ReliaMax into liquidation due to...

Recent Hail Damage in South Dakota’s Northern Black Hills Costing Millions

Jul 26 2018 // Recent hail damage to public buildings in Deadwood, South Dakota, is expected to exceed $2 million. Transportation and Facilities Director Tom Kruzel says a $1.8 million damage estimate involves only the 45 public...