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The Education committee had the day off on Monday as we waited for Senate Bills to arrive, so our day started at 2:00 finding us on the House floor. We again started with a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, and the work began.
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Week eight down and one week left to go for the 101st Legislative Session. In appropriations this week we rolled through budget setting for departments that didn’t have much change from last year. Motion Sheets from our work group to begin right sizing FTE(full time employees) and Federal and other fund authority have been supported by the committee so far. We did not pull back on as much as I had pushed for, but since we ran out of time to get motion sheets in we settled on a middle ground that both us and our LRC staff and the Governor’s staff could agree upon. If the great people of District 21 decide to send me back to Pierre again I intend to continue to dig through this topic with the intention of getting even more of the fluff cut down in these areas by building off the data from this work group. If anyone would like to talk about the data we compiled to show excess authority vs what we are cutting this year please reach out. I would be happy to share! One of the most consequential demands of the appropriations committee is to act on principle, not emotion. If the appropriations committee gives the thumbs up to every program’s request for an increase, allows new programs to be built into the General Appropriation Bill, or allows the requests for the State to fund an ever-increasing role into all parts of life to pass, we will end up with a socialist mess that is failing our citizens. We must remember the state has exactly zero dollars of its own to give. This coming week is truly going to be a test, as there are five to six different motion sheets that will expand the role of government into an area it historically has not been funding in an on-going capacity, or will increase on-going dollars to programs that are not the fundamental role of government. Every dollar we allow to be pulled into something else is a dollar that will not go toward our basic obligations like the big three- raises for state employees, inflationary increases for providers, and increases for education.
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The Wagner boys basketball team jumped out to an early lead and nnever looked back Tuesday night, defeating Bon Homme 77-42 in the opening round of the Region 5A tournament.
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For one Wagner native, wrestling has been far more than a sport. It has been a lifelong journey that began in childhood and helped shape the person he is today — a journey that recently led to induction into the South Dakota Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
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Wrestling has long been woven into the fabric of Wagner, and for brothers Jay and Dan Swatek, the sport has shaped more than four decades of competition, mentorship, and lifelong lessons. Their dedication was recently recognized when both were inducted into the South Dakota Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame — a milestone that carries special meaning for the brothers, who grew up immersed in Wagner’s wrestling culture.
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SANGSTER WINS LEGION SWEEPSTAKES GRAND PRIZE
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Platte, South Dakota
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