The Daily Slice, your Black Hills news podcast in under 10 minutes. Delivered every morning Monday-Friday at homesliceaudio.com/dailyslice
SD Lawmakers Approve Trimmed Spending Bills Amid Budget Talks
PIERRE, S.D. — On Thursday, the South Dakota Joint Committee on Appropriations approved two major spending bills, along with two others with drastically reduced funding, as an expression of continued negotiations between the House and Senate. SB 95 for rural infrastructure, SB 132 for airport terminals and HB 1041 for state library services were all reduced to drastically slimmed down funding in their moves forward. Education officials have said the library compromise keeps federal funding but cuts $825,000. Legislators tabled two other spending measures. Leaders of the committees say the placeholder amounts allow discussion between the House and Senate as they work out their budget priorities.
Traffic Stop in RC Leads to Arrest, Discovery of Illegally Modified Firearm
RAPID CITY, S.D. — A routine traffic stop in Rapid City on the night of February 26 led to the arrest of an 18-year-old man and the discovery of an illegally modified firearm. Shortly after 10 p.m., a Rapid City Police Department officer observed a vehicle turn into oncoming traffic while attempting to park illegally near Marquette Drive and Signal Drive. As the officer initiated a traffic stop, multiple individuals exited the vehicle. During the investigation, police identified front-seat passenger Tatum Tall, 18, of Box Elder, and confirmed he had active warrants for his arrest. A consent search of the vehicle uncovered a modified firearm under the front passenger seat, with both the barrel and stock illegally altered.
South Dakota Lawmakers Pass Bill to Reform Felony Ingestion Charge
RAPID CITY, S.D. — House lawmakers are sending a bill to Gov. Larry Rhoden that reforms the state’s felony ingestion charge. Current law treats ingestion of a controlled substance a class 6 felony. South Dakota is the only state in the country where ingestion of a controlled substance is a felony. Proponents say the current law isn’t working and that a felony charge follows someone the rest of their life, making it hard to get a job and housing. Senate Bill 83 makes it a misdemeanor if someone ingests a controlled substance for the first two offenses in 10 years.
Trump to sign order Friday designating English as the official language of the US
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order on Friday designating English as the official language of the United States. That’s according to the White House. The order will allow government agencies and organizations that receive federal funding to choose whether to continue to offer documents and services in language other than English, according to a fact sheet about the impending order. The executive will rescind a mandate from former President Bill Clinton that required the government and organizations that received federal funding to provide language assistance to non-English speakers.
At meeting with Trump, Zelenskyy will seek security assurances against future Russian aggression
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is meeting with President Donald Trump in Washington. Friday’s meeting is a pivotal moment for Zelenskyy’s country, hinging on whether he can persuade the Republican to provide some form of U.S. backing for Ukraine’s security against any future Russian aggression. During the visit, Ukraine is expected to sign a landmark economic agreement with the U.S. that would bind the two countries economically for years. Zelenskyy insists on firm security guarantees to safeguard his country. There are concerns Trump may broker a peace deal favoring Russia. But U.S. officials argue American investments in Ukraine will inherently enhance its security. Zelenskyy also will meet with U.S. senators while in Washington.
Are egg producers inflating prices during the bird flu outbreak to boost profits?
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Egg producers blame the ongoing bird flu outbreak for driving prices up to record highs. But some believe giant companies are taking advantage of their market dominance to profit handsomely at the expense of egg buyers. Advocacy groups, Democratic lawmakers and a member of the Federal Trade Commission are calling for a government investigation after egg prices spiked to a record average of $4.95 per dozen this month. Most experts agree with the industry that bird flu is to blame. Millions of birds have been killed, but critics say egg supplies remain too robust to justify the higher prices.
Trump Administration Fires Hundreds at NOAA Amid Legal Challenge
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration fired hundreds of employees at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on Thursday, with sources indicating that more layoffs could follow. The cuts come as NOAA faces staffing shortages while responding to the increasing frequency of climate crises and severe natural disasters. Meanwhile, a federal judge ruled that the mass firings of probationary federal employees were likely unlawful, granting temporary relief to labor unions and organizations that sued to block the administration’s workforce overhaul. It remains unclear whether the ruling will halt additional firings of federal probationary workers.
Meta Apologizes for Instagram Glitch Showing Violent Reels
Meta, the parent company of Instagram, issued an apology Thursday after a glitch caused violent video recommendations to appear in users’ Reels feeds. Throughout the week, numerous Instagram users reported seeing disturbing videos of people being beaten or killed, including content the platform had previously labeled as “sensitive.” Meta confirmed the issue has been fixed but did not provide details on what caused the malfunction. The company has been working to boost short-form video engagement, especially as rival TikTok faces uncertainty in the U.S. TikTok has just over a month to secure a non-Chinese owner for its U.S. operations or risk being banned in the country.
