Update: Senate lawmakers voted to advance an amended version of House Bill 1041 that softens the proposed cuts to the State Library. The bill now awaits Gov. Larry Rhoden's signature.
Background: House Bill 1041 would revise and repeal certain provisions pertaining to the state library and State Library Board.
Our position: The ACLU of South Dakota opposes House Bill 1041. This bill would repeal all funding for the South Dakota State Library. The state library provides a multitude of critical services in South Dakota, including research for legislators, support and training for all South Dakota libraries, the compilation of library statistics, historical archiving of government documents, and the State Library Board. The State Library is critical to education equity, especially for low-income and rural students. Cutting $1.3 million from the State Library Budget will cut almost all of the State Library's staff and critical programs across the state.
