• City reworks Sustainability Summit. The City of Sioux Falls is reimagining its annual sustainability summit as a new "Big Sioux Stewardship Summit. The two-day event will include bus tours to showcase various conservation efforts and other ways local governments are working to reduce environmental impact. Learn more about the event here.
  • Nominate women doing cool stuff. SD CEO Women's Business Center is now accepting applications for the "Outstanding Women in Business Awards" recognizing women in entrepreneurship. Learn more an nominate folks here.
  • Council OKs exhibition driving with permit. The City Council voted Tuesday night to allow temporary racing events with approval and permits from the police department. Read the full ordinance here.

SODAK SIMPLIFIED

A bunch of things from Pierre

  • 'Locking up librarians' bill chills out a bit. Lawmakers opted not to hold librarians criminally liable if kids check out content deemed "harmful to minors." Instead, an extensive amendment to the bill would implement an appeals process by which concerned community members challenge librarians' decisions about what type of content is available. That's headed now to Gov. Larry Rhoden's desk. South Dakota Searchlight has more context.
  • Lawmakers OK governor's property tax relief plan. The last bill standing in the state legislature's mission to cut property taxes is headed to Gov. Larry Rhoden's desk. It essentially puts a cap on how much a homeowner's property's assessed value can go up over the next five years. The Dakota Scout has a better, more in-depth explanation here.
  • SDPB keeps its funding. Lawmakers on Tuesday voted to maintain funding for South Dakota Public Broadcasting – rejecting former Gov. Kristi Noem's proposed $3.6 million cut to the service. Searchlight has more.
  • Bathroom bill advances. A bill to prohibit transgender people from using bathrooms and changing rooms aligned with their gender identity is headed back to the House of Representatives after passing the Senate with amendments.
    • The bill defines "male" and "female" as individuals whose reproductive systems that "has, had, will have, or would have, but for a congenital anomaly or intentional or unintentional disruption" produce sperm and eggs, respectively. Searchlight has more.
  • Raising the bar for constitutional amendments. Lawmakers this week voted to pass House Joint Resolution 5003. The resolution will let voters decide if the state should make it more challenging for voters to amend the state constitution by requiring constitutional amendments to pass with 60% of the vote instead of a simple majority.