Bureau of Finance and Management Commissioner Jim Terwilliger told the Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors yesterday that South Dakota faces economic “headwinds”. Those headwinds appear to blowing straight from the guy we elected President, in the form of inflation:
Sioux Falls council member Shawn Pritchett reported sales tax collections were up through September. But he warned inflation is beginning to hurt consumer spending, as shown by softer concert ticket sales.
…Higher prices are also taking a toll on tourism in the Black Hills. Council member Caleb Arceneaux of Rapid City reported that visitation to Mount Rushmore and Badlands National Park is down. He said regional visitor spending is also down, calling it “a pretty significant drop for us” [Joshua Haiar, ‘”Discussion of Economic ‘Headwinds’ in South Dakota Includes Falling Labor Force Participation,” South Dakota Searchlight, 2026.10.29].
…tariffs:
Brookings council member Carla Gatzke reported new construction is happening across the city. However, she said federal tariff policies are raising the cost of doing business for local manufacturers who import materials and must pay tariffs.
“This variability in tariffs, this up and down with Canada, impacts manufacturing,” Gatzke said. “A lot of metal is imported from Canada” [Haiar, 2026.10.29].
…poor international relations:
[Arceneaux] said visits from Canada fell about 35%, “so we’re seeing a lot less of that international travel from the north” [Haiar, 2026.10.29].
…reckless federal job cuts:
[Arceneaux] added that the National Park Service lost 20% to 25% of its full-time staff in 2025 due to federal cuts, and “that’s creating some challenges,” too [Haiar, 2026.10.29].
…a lack of immigrants to fill the jobs that South Dakotans are leaving open:
The share of South Dakota residents 16 or older who are working or actively looking for work — known as the labor force participation rate — fell to 66.3% in September. That’s down from 68.2% in September 2025.
The number remains above the national rate of about 62%, but the recent dip accelerated a downward trend in South Dakota from a peak of 73.4% in 2003.
State Economist Derek Johnson said South Dakota also has at least three job openings for every unemployed person, with an unemployment rate of 2% [Haiar, 2026.10.29].
…and the board only got into the beating farmers are taking due to our supply-chain-kinking war on Iran by mentioning the $8 billion in election bribes ag welfare federal assistance USDA is throwing at farmers to help cover record-high diesel prices.
Donald Trump’s policy priorities—tariffs, war, deportations, hostility toward allies—have all actively and directly sandbagged South Dakota’s economy. Allegedly pro-business, laissez-faire Republicans have laissez‘d Trump faire (that’s bad French for let Trump do) enormous damage to South Dakota’s business climate. Why would anyone who wants South Dakota to prosper vote for any Republican promising more Trumponomics?