The Joint Committee on Appropriations signed some letters of intent Tuesday, Veto Day, directing the Board of Regents and Board of Technical Education about how to spend some money given to them during the legislative session.
What the committee wants for USD
First, the committee directed the BOR to use $8 million of the more than $16 million it received for Higher Education Facility Fund bond payments and maintenance and repair this year to be set aside for maintenance and repair of the Churchill-Haines lab at the University of South Dakota.
A $10 million bill to renovate the lab was killed in 2022. USD President Sheila Gestring included a $20.5 million request to preserve and modernize the lab, and the South Dakota Union building, Dakota Hall and East Hall in her State of the University Address in 2022.
This letter of intent is the first step in support for the lab. A report detailing the use of the funding shall be presented during the 2025 budget hearing, according to the letter.
A Center for Civic Engagement
Second, the committee asked that a portion of the $926,406 in base general funding increase for Black Hills State University be used to create a Center for Civic Engagement at BHSU.
Such a center has been the focus of Rep. Scott Odenbach (R-Spearfish) for the last several years, with each of his bills failing at some point in the legislative process.
While Odenbach’s bill for the center didn’t pass this year, the Legislature’s intent is that the center “provides undergraduate students with the foundation to succeed as lifelong citizens and future leaders in political, economic and civic life.”
According to the letter, the center must provide this foundation “by incorporating, in the education of the students, a broad range of subjects, including communications, economics, history, philosophy, political science, and sociology, and enhancing the students' understanding of civic affairs and discourse.”
BHSU must collaborate with the BOR to develop and provide curricula and programs, sponsor and host civic-focused events, provide experiential learning opportunities, provide civic programming, and provide other resources in support of the center. BHSU must also present on the center during the 2025 session.
Split funding for quantum science and technology
Third, the committee wrote that the $3,034,444 contained in Senate Bill 45 to start the Center for Quantum Information Science and Technology should be divided up, with $1,222,222 going to Dakota State University, another $1,222,222 going to South Dakota Mines, and $590,000 to the BOR office for simulator access.
Both DSU and Mines are to provide quarterly reports to the BOR until funds are expended and report to the committee during the 2025 budget hearing.
Tuition freezes and salary increases
Fourth, the committee wrote letters to both the BOR and BOTE detailing that the BOR should use the additional $5,735,607 in general funds it received, and the BOTE should use the additional $1,384,687 in general funds it received, for the 4% increase in salary policy for employees; and, that tuition and fees will not increase for the 2024-2025 school year for both the BOR and BOTE.
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