SEARCHLIGHT NEWS
The South Dakota Senate meets on Feb. 11, 2026, at the Capitol in Pierre. (Photo by Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)
By Meghan O’Brien
South Dakota lawmakers can anticipate a raise and a salary of nearly $16,500 next year; meanwhile, the average payout per legislator was $26,813 during the last fiscal year after accounting for mileage, an allowance for living expenses, and out-of-state travel to conferences, according to data obtained by South Dakota Searchlight from the state’s Legislative Research Council.
COMMENTARY
Cattle expand a fire line along a road. (Photo by Dave Marston)
By Dave Marston
When fire commanders try to figure out how to contain a major wildfire, the last thing you might expect them to deploy is a herd of beef cattle. But on the recent Gold Mountain Fire in western Colorado, cows are eating the “fine fuels” along a three-mile fire line on the Big Cimarron River.
FROM STATES NEWSROOM
By Stories from the States
Anxiety over artificial intelligence is growing. Will it replace humans and take jobs? How will it change our privacy? Will it impact our elections? The list of existential questions about AI goes on.
The technology has not been regulated on a national level. Congress has struggled to pass federal legislation, while the Trump administration has pushed to limit state oversight efforts.
One expert says states have stepped up to the plate to create commonsense guardrails on AI.
NATIONAL NEWS
ACLU-WV files lawsuit over West Virginia school aid formula | West Virginia Watch
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