New prison will protect citizens

Well, the 2025 special session has come to a close. We had caucus, open meetings, testimony from opponents and proponents, and legislators. We began at 8 am and continued through to almost 8 pm. It was a long, brutal day, but one that we knew had to happen in order to further the project and help to safeguard our citizens going forward. Quite frankly, it is too bad that legislators are not as committed to property tax reform…but that’s a subject for another time. 
We, as a state, have known for a long time that the state prison in Sioux Falls needed replacing. Legislators began talking about it back in 1971. Five years ago, Gov. Noem had the courage to create the Incarceration Construction Fund and we began saving for the largest expenditure in South Dakota history. All prior administrations were unwilling to do what it would take to fund a new facility for the citizens of South Dakota and ensure that it was paid for upfront, without incurring debt.
I just came back from a conference with legislators from all over the United States, and all of them are looking at building a new prison(s). Kansas is planning on building three prisons and will bond them all. That means that their kids and grandkids will be paying for those facilities long into the future. In South Dakota, our children and grandchildren will not be saddled with a $650 million dollar debt for years and years to come because we have the funds set aside  pay for it.   
After the prison bill was defeated last session, Gov. Rhoden appointed a task force to look into the viability of building a new prison or upgrading the prison we already have. He asked the task force to answer three questions: 
• Does the prison need to be replaced? The answer from the task force was a unanimous yes. They found the existing prison is not fit for humans and has substandard conditions. Keep in mind that the existing prison was built 144 years ago in 1881 as a territorial prison. Yep, it was built when South Dakota was a territory, before it was a state, before there was running water or electricity. It is the oldest functioning prison in the United States.
• Can we add onto the existing locations in Sioux Falls and Springfield? The answer was no. It would be too expensive and increase costs by 38 perecent and would still be substandard. 
• What should replace it? Their answer was a 1,500-bed prison; with 1,200 cell, 300 dorm style beds and built with a 100-year lifespan. The task force also mandated that the prison could not cost more than $650 million. This is $175 million less than the original proposal that failed last session.
The task force also required that we have a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) in place. This means that if there are increases to the price of building materials, for example, they will be absorbed by the contingency funds that were built into the bid. They won’t be coming back to the legislature for more funding.
A few constituents were very vocal that they didn’t want the funds that the legislature had put away over the past five years to be used to fund the prison. Unfortunately, these funds can only be used for capital construction projects. The dollars can’t come back to the citizens in the form of a rebate to offset property taxes or be redirected elsewhere. 
Now we can begin to move forward. We will have a 100-year asset, no bond debt, no cut in services and a safer environment for our correction officers and the inmates themselves. The new prison will take approximately four years to complete giving the Department of Corrections the time to ensure that effective programs, mental health services, training opportunities and safety systems are in place. They are also discussing providing training in the trades. 
Upon successful completion, participants in this program would earn a certificate and develop a valuable skill to help them reenter life after incarceration. Combined with the other programs being implemented, we can begin to address the recidivism challenges facing our prison system. I was told that recidivism and environment go hand in hand—when people feel safe, they can be rehabilitated, if they choose to be. In the end, it always comes down to a choice.
My seatmate, Rep. Mary Fitzgerald, put it in perspective when she noted, “The core obligation of government is to protect its citizens. To fulfill that duty, we must have a facility where those who pose a continued threat to others can be securely held.”
South Dakota is on its way to doing just that!