Business Done Right

 
By: Gov. Larry Rhoden

October 24, 2025  

The right project in the right place at the right time. That’s how we do economic development in South Dakota. More often than not, that means focusing on opportunities for existing South Dakota businesses to grow and expand – whether that be a new product, a new market, or just doing what they do well on a bigger scale. Sometimes that means finding the right partner to move into the state in a way that benefits us as well as that new business.

South Dakota has taken this approach for many years, and it’s worked very well for us. Under the Noem-Rhoden Administration, this approach hit a greater stride. After Governor Noem declared South Dakota “Open for Business” during the COVID pandemic, visitors came to South Dakota by the millions. Freedom-loving Americans moved here by the tens of thousands. And businesses relocated here in huge numbers, as well.

This growth has set South Dakota up well. We have the lowest unemployment rate in America and have won the Governor’s Cup each of the last two years, meaning we have the most economic development projects per-capita. On top of that, we have the 6^th fastest growing economy of any state and the 4^th highest average personal incomes. Over the past several years, there were times when South Dakota even led the nation in income growth!

The economy boomed under the Noem-Rhoden Administration, and we’re working hard to keep it strong since I took the reins as Governor. That doesn’t mean saying yes to every project. We’ll be better served in the long run if we continue to advance the right project in the right place at the right time.

Two such right projects are the expansions currently underway at both the Sioux Falls and Rapid City airports. Since 2019, when Governor Noem and I took over in Pierre, we’ve consistently broken records every year for tourism. In fact, the number of folks coming through the Rapid City airport has increased by 30% over that timeframe, and Sioux Falls is up by 25%. Those are staggering numbers, and even over the last year, we’ve seen another steady increase.

I announced a plan to make a wise and targeted investment in these airport projects. The state has leftover housing dollars available that haven’t been used, so if we shift these to our economic development fund, we can offer them to the two airports in the form of a loan that they’ll repay over 20 years. It’ll be a 0% loan so that the projects will remain affordable, and the state will get those dollars back over time once the projects become profitable. That’s a win-win!

That’s how we do business in South Dakota. We invest in our communities. We keep taxes low and regulation light. We pave the road for opportunity and then get out of the way. And that’s how we’ll continue to approach these issues: the right project in the right place at the right time.

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