South Dakota
Despite scheduling challenges, South Dakota strikes new balance with 2024 football slate
PIERRE — In recent years, South Dakota’s high school football schedules have experienced an increase in Thursday and Saturday contests, as well as earlier start times on Fridays to accommodate teams and officials alike.
Though the total number of non-Friday games is nearly identical to a season ago, a series of schedule tweaks have allowed more schools to be content with their assigned slates, according to Randy Soma, an assistant executive director for the South Dakota High School Activities Association.
“We’re still playing a lot of Thursday and Saturday games,” Soma said, “but most of the schools have requested it, so that’s helped.”
One of the most significant changes since last year is courtesy of the All-Nations Conference, which operates for tribal schools parallel to the traditional seven classes of South Dakota high school football.
The All-Nations Conference has found a stable schedule by playing most of its games on Thursday nights. In fact, the majority of Thursday contests scheduled for this fall are All-Nations Conference contests, with at least a half-dozen games each Thursday throughout the regular season.
Overall, a slight increase in the number of Thursday games has allowed for a slight decrease in the number of Saturday contests. Approximately five out of every six high school football games in South Dakota remain on Friday nights.
“It’s always challenging to create all those football schedules,” Soma said. “It’s never perfect, but we get it accomplished.”
Due to the remote location of some school districts and the travel time required to get there, it can sometimes be tricky to find officials for Friday night games, but that burden is eased if the school is open to a Thursday or Saturday game date.
One noticeable change to Friday nights has been an uptick in the number of games that kick off prior to 7 p.m. A handful of games each week, especially those that require significant travel for the visiting team, begin at 6 p.m., and a select few evening games start as early as 5 p.m. That’s in addition to a handful of mid-afternoon kickoffs each season.
Soma said it’s becoming more uncommon, but some crews will work two games in one day, officiating a mid-afternoon game before moving on to a regular 7 p.m. kickoff game in the same area.
“We like schools to go 7 p.m. if possible, but as long as the officials can make it and the other school is fine with that start time, we’re OK with it, too,” Soma said. “We want to accommodate schools and allow them to do some of that because they might have other things planned behind it.”
Soma said that, overall, the feedback he’s heard surrounding this year’s football schedule has been positive. However, he did note that as co-ops sometimes form or dissolve well into the spring, it creates significant delays with getting all the schedules out.
Moving forward, the SDHSAA adopted a process that will allow for schedules to be released when they are finished on a class-by-class basis, as opposed to having to wait to release all seven classes at once. Particularly for Class 11AAA schools, Soma said there’s the possibility of adding games against programs from neighboring states, perhaps as soon as the next reclassification cycle that would take effect in 2026.
“We’re here to support the schools, so if there are changes that need to be made, we’re fine with that,” Soma said. “Right now, we are just scheduling within the class as much as possible and doing the best we can to get everybody a viable schedule.
“We take a lot of stuff into consideration, and schools have been really good about accepting what they get. Sometimes, they might be frustrated, but overall, I think they feel like they’ve been heard,” Soma continued. “We’re always trying to improve, and I think we’re getting better at it.”
Dierks covers prep and collegiate athletics across the Mitchell Republic’s coverage region area. His focus areas include: Mitchell High School football and boys basketball; area high school football, volleyball, basketball, baseball and track and field; and South Dakota State football. He is also at the forefront of the Mitchell Republic’s podcasting efforts. Dierks is a Mitchell native who graduated from South Dakota State University with his bachelor’s degree in journalism in May 2020. He joined the Mitchell Republic sports staff in August 2021. He can be reached at ldierks@mitchellrepublic.com and found on Twitter at @LDierksy.
South Dakota
SD Lottery Mega Millions, Millionaire for Life winning numbers for March 10, 2026
The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 10, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from March 10 drawing
16-21-30-35-65, Mega Ball: 07
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 10 drawing
03-27-43-45-49, Bonus: 04
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
South Dakota
Trading property tax for sales tax: Legislature moves forward with parts of homeowner relief package
PIERRE — Two pieces of a property tax reduction package prepared by South Dakota’s legislative leadership and the executive branch are moving forward, but one bill failed during votes on Monday as lawmakers began the final week of the annual legislative session.
The House of Representatives voted
42-27
in support of
Senate Bill 245
, which would pull future revenue from a scheduled sales tax increase from 4.2% to 4.5% next year into a relief fund for homeowner property taxes, and use nearly $56 million in one-time money to seed the fund before the sales tax increase.
The Senate supported
House Bill 1323
, which would reduce the number of petition signatures needed to force an election on a local government’s decision to levy property taxes beyond limits set by the state. The Senate passed the bill 19-15.
Both bills have to return to the opposite chamber for consideration of amendments.
The Senate rejected
House Bill 1253
, which would cap annual assessment growth for owner-occupied homes and commercial properties at 5% annually and reset assessments back to market value every five years. The bill failed with a 9-24 vote.
The bills are part of a broader,
five-bill legislative package
targeted at property tax relief.
Another bill
in the package, which would allow counties to implement a half-percent sales tax with proceeds going to homeowner property tax credits, is awaiting the governor’s signature after he proposed it and it received both chambers’ approval.
The legislative budget committee is scheduled to consider a fifth piece of legislation in the package on Tuesday.
The bill
would reduce maximum property tax levies for school districts.
Sales tax bill overcomes concerns about future budget needs
SB 245 would capture revenue from the impending sales tax increase to deposit into a “homeowner property tax reduction fund” meant to reduce property taxes levied by school districts. The Legislature and then-Gov. Kristi Noem reduced the state sales tax rate three years ago but scheduled the reduction to sunset in 2027.
House Speaker Jon Hansen, R-Dell Rapids, told lawmakers on Monday that the bill would be an “investment in the people,” because it’ll give South Dakota homeowners more money to spend as they choose. Hansen, the bill’s sponsor and a candidate for governor, said that would lead to more spending and, therefore, more sales tax revenue. The state relies on sales taxes, while counties and schools rely on property taxes, and cities receive revenue from property taxes and sales taxes.
Some opponents said the legislation would favor wealthier, property-owning South Dakotans rather than lower-income renters.
(Photo by Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)
Rep. Mike Weisgram, R-Fort Pierre, worried that automatically diverting future state revenue to reduce homeowner property taxes would come at the cost of other priorities, such as annual funding increases for state employees, Medicaid providers and public schools — which are known as the “big three” budget priorities. Lawmakers often
aim
to increase funding for the groups by 3% or inflation, whichever is less. An inflationary increase this legislative session would be 2.5%, according to the state Department of Education.
“We are just clawing to get 1.4% for the big three,” Weisgram said. “I don’t think any of us are proud of that.”
Hansen said the decision “is not an either-or” situation.
“We can help the property taxpayers in the state who desperately, desperately need it,” Hansen said, “and then I trust fully that this state is going to continue to grow and that we are going to be able to meet the needs of our core obligations of this state.”
The bill was introduced as an amendment to placeholder legislation last week, and it will head to the Senate for approval. The Senate narrowly rejected a
similar proposal
earlier this legislative session.
Senate approves lower signature threshold to force election on excess taxes
The version of House Bill 1323 that passed the Senate would set the number of petition signatures needed to force an election on an excess tax levy (often called an “opt-out”) for a local government at 2,500 or 5% of registered voters within its jurisdiction, whichever is less. The current threshold to refer decisions by a local government is 5% of registered voters in the district, without a 2,500 signature cap.
The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Taffy Howard, R-Rapid City, said it will still be difficult to refer decisions by a local government to voters.
“You’re talking dozens and dozens of volunteers, weeks of organized effort,” Howard said. “There’s not a lot of people that have been through that and can even organize that kind of effort. So it’s not a trivial bar.”
Because the bill was amended since it last appeared in the House, it’ll now go to the House for approval.
HB 1253 intended to provide South Dakota homeowners and commercial property owners predictable increases in their property assessments, which factor into property taxes they pay, over five year periods.
But opponents said the change would shift the property tax burden onto farmers and ranchers and surprise homeowners every five years when assessments would be re-based on market value, which could lead to double-digit increases in assessments.
This story was originally published on
SouthDakotaSearchlight.com.
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South Dakota
Political Pulse: South Dakota Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff on data centers, property taxes and more
RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) – State Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff joined Political Pulse over the weekend.
Mehlhaff weighed in on property tax proposals, data centers, and effort to repeal the death penalty and speculation that Kristi Noem could run for Senate.
The interviewed was taped on Saturday.
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