Search

Require legislative approval for significant capital expenditures by the Department of Game, Fish and Parks.

South Dakota's Department of Game, Fish and Parks will now need to get approval from the state Legislature before spending more than $1 million on buildings, facilities, infrastructure projects, or real estate purchases. If the Legislature isn't in session and time is critical, the department can get emergency approval from a special legislative committee instead. The bill prevents the department from splitting up projects into smaller pieces to avoid this approval requirement.

Require legislative approval of real property leases that are necessary for the operation of state government and exceed specified durations or rental payments.

This bill requires the South Dakota Legislature to approve any real property leases that the state government needs to operate if the lease lasts longer than a certain duration or costs more than a specified annual rental amount. Currently, state agencies can enter into these leases without legislative review, but this bill adds a new approval requirement for larger or longer-term leases to give lawmakers more oversight of state spending on real estate.