HB1298

This bill redirects federal payments that South Dakota receives from two national forests—the Black Hills National Forest and the Custer National Forest—away from county roads and schools and toward new state grant programs instead. Money from the Black Hills National Forest now goes to a Native American achievement schools grant program, while Custer National Forest payments go to a local infrastructure improvement fund reserved for tribal governments. Instead of directly benefiting the five counties surrounding Black Hills National Forest and Harding County, these federal forest revenues will now support statewide programs focused on Native American education and tribal infrastructure.