[{"_1":2,"_110":-5,"_111":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,98],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6195373,"mediaKeyId","3862571-a281d6deaa773115facf0df7697d9a51","parentId",3862571,"title","Commission appoints Denise Maher to 4‑H advisory board","audioSeconds",80,"startMs",796000,"endMs",876000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3862571-a281d6deaa773115facf0df7697d9a51&start=796&end=876","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3862571-a281d6deaa773115facf0df7697d9a51/thumbnail_796000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6195373/Pennington-County/South-Dakota/Commission-appoints-Denise-Maher-to-4H-advisory-board","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6195373-b35d69faafef2d3ef2898ad01f01b668/orig.mp4?Expires=1771169300&Signature=UX~o8PjT9nTnkxqFn88xpjIilJYxG5zPVp6yvPPneUFckJCRC3yhuzk6EgIkV0ReRA0NGFS0AXx8gVfYrDbS~fKFq8b2fgkcQy2BuoBcmQMSsk2bTnvt6yHoRDQF1k-eBo9AHbxDkoyvOVgQ7u5dCz1HSWlmC04A3nrX9byfpRSGY-oUj~Je-tZa-VrLxVQNyN2G8ulO2TsGeNnVOrPV6yPGThkjLsd~hJtleT27gWGiv-kWH7rUvYp9XUXxva-tKVWmNG0sUczN80heJAaWSYwpkd7hGO5Hepk9pbhk61sCH0eWdgVusfDBYrLqw8zxd25Miixkvz33iaJLiAmOXg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Pennington County, SD","date","2025-06-18T16:45:43Z","article","Pennington County commissioners on June 17 appointed Denise Maher to fill a vacancy on the county’s 4‑H Extension Advisory Board.

Maher told commissioners she has long experience with 4‑H — judging dog shows, teaching classes and volunteering — and said the program has much to offer beyond agriculture. \"I think a lot of parents think it's animals and ag but there's so much more to 4‑H,\" Maher said, noting new programming in robotics and leadership.

The appointment passed on a voice vote reported as 4‑1. Commissioners thanked Maher for volunteering and urged the advisory board to review the county’s memorandum of understanding with South Dakota State University regarding funding and clerical support; some commissioners recommended clarifying whether clerical support should be a state employee funded through the MOU rather than county staff time.

The commission asked county staff and board liaisons to review the MOU and potential shifts in financial or personnel arrangements to streamline reimbursements and reduce administrative complexity.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","6-17-2025 Pennington County Board of Commissioners Meeting","oneSentenceSummary","The board approved Denise Maher’s appointment to the Pennington County 4‑H Extension Advisory Board by voice vote; she highlighted volunteer experience and a desire to expand program outreach beyond traditional agriculture activities.","taxTitle","Pennington County, South Dakota","taxId",2745,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6195378,"Commission approves personnel step increases for recent hires after debate over timing and budget control",565,185000,750000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3862571-a281d6deaa773115facf0df7697d9a51&start=185&end=750","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3862571-a281d6deaa773115facf0df7697d9a51/thumbnail_185000.jpg","/articles/6195378/Pennington-County/South-Dakota/Commission-approves-personnel-step-increases-for-recent-hires-after-debate-over-timing-and-budget-control","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6195378-80bc821b87ae42e17398cc13cc53dcb5/orig.mp4?Expires=1771169300&Signature=Y7RdK37FhcE48a2eDICafoKqak3ewKXTrOwlx11eeBMtocjB3dDsK~DIi5G~R6NxOqr8stCbTzaVrnBEI2dBRZWz-LgV-r9RSVE80MQMhB-lQ2bFT8XZLNJIMoLTUAIt2sALWl8FvrspndSkjqO7z5XW2oIS2M8FYfVJfGB-wshnC8oerxxbj8ymnKPJ3jH~4vfJknSd-vgLds0CksZ6S03gm1wBMIl1~A7euY19lfzodf7fpaiwR6h2HkLLVamlzZ7jE7zJnWqkmc7FKWGGztNeMYwVULkydvMKyerp258SkcJorHyPsG6~FKObbWW6A1QtUSd6of7rJ3rx05BpQA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Pennington County commissioners approved personnel actions on the consent agenda (item G) with a 3–2 roll‑call vote on June 17 after a substantive discussion about department‑level step increases granted to employees within their first 12 months.

Commissioner Drews and others asked why two newer employees in the human resources office and other recent hires were being moved multiple steps on the wage scale so soon after being hired. Carol Bancroft, the county HR director, explained the policy allowing step increases within the first 12 months of employment and said the individuals involved were below the policy cap; she said one was at step 5 and another at step 3 and that the policy allows movement up to 10 steps.

Several commissioners raised budgetary concerns. Commissioner Durr said ad‑hoc step increases can make personnel budgeting unpredictable and argued changes to the employee manual should be considered as part of the 2026 budget process so the county can achieve consistent, organization‑wide policy. Commissioner Hadcock and others said the HR office had been applying the existing policy consistently and that the increases reward experience and retain staff.

The board voted 3–2 to approve the consent agenda action on item G; the minutes record votes of the board and a subsequent motion to proceed with the listed personnel transactions.

Separately, commissioners noted a corrected personnel item for an interim commander classification and confirmed changes intended to match a prior board motion.

The action was approved by majority vote; several commissioners asked staff to return with proposed manual amendments as part of the next budget cycle to address organization‑wide consistency and fiscal planning.","Board approved the personnel actions on the consent agenda item G by a 3–2 vote after commissioners raised concerns about step increases granted to employees within their first year and the effect on long‑term budgeting.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":91,"_47":92,"_49":93,"_51":94,"_53":95,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":96,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":97,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6195383,"Pennington County treasurer seeks three hires; commissioners ask for data, pause on queuing technology",0,6096000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3862571-a281d6deaa773115facf0df7697d9a51&start=6096&end=6096","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3862571-a281d6deaa773115facf0df7697d9a51/thumbnail_6096000.jpg","/articles/6195383/Pennington-County/South-Dakota/Pennington-County-treasurer-seeks-three-hires-commissioners-ask-for-data-pause-on-queuing-technology","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6195383-d65e5ee5d11685017fc8e39c4e839b77/orig.mp4?Expires=1771169300&Signature=QJF3LnAk1Gq~nFb16ya3gucemzof6B0Imb27GTP6BdksbFsHtkOyTsS4DHUBL6o490feaH2h1fhwtwbqQkTyCvjPfMA72ZPx65v3s7HhmvQxaNAijq~Pu2zuW2tSCyVXUscJgei-h8PFdo2Xodsc6Guw3nQpb2Kj5V4HSO3bEz82rgbOiOYLsGcxxJCUeGt23jxE54ubwi9Uq7yrguuP7nv4Lnq1GUIdpkWYg4Yzd1LnoYIUckw~w4XWCxzZlKoHTkSfcIv1KPrT9cHt-qpJHH4-VN4p79UAm~mxiOks5tTWjnjq4oTlawPylwOcvl8OKjK5TE-GDSRYAPxjxEsRow__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Pennington County Treasurer Annette Brandt told the Board of Commissioners on June 17 she needs three additional full‑time employees to cope with high volumes of title and registration work since the state’s new vehicle system went live earlier this year.

Brandt said training for motor‑vehicle staff is time‑intensive and the office’s mail backlog has stretched from days to weeks while staff prioritizes in‑person customers. \"I have $30,000 left in the budget for 2025 for overtime right now,\" Brandt said, and she warned that employees are exhausted and unwilling to take additional overtime.

The treasurer’s request and a broader conversation about the office’s customer queuing system turned into a wider policy discussion. Several commissioners said they support the office but asked for more objective, outcomes‑based data before approving a roughly $232,000 annual personnel cost the office estimates for three fully loaded positions.

Commissioners asked staff to produce comparative analyses showing: prior performance under a five‑day public schedule versus the current four‑day schedule, transactions per employee by shift, the queuing system’s effect on in‑person wait times and call‑center disconnects, and comparisons with a similar county (Minnehaha County) that uses the state system and dealer volumes.

Several commissioners proposed a short operational pause of the queuing technology so the county can assess whether it is improving service; others urged that approach be tested before any systemwide change. The board also discussed non‑personnel remedies the treasurer has pursued, including plans for an additional self‑service kiosk in Box Elder and HR support to speed hiring and onboarding.

After extended discussion, commissioners did not approve the three positions at the meeting. They directed county staff to compile the requested workflow and performance data and return with it at the next meeting; staff and the treasurer said they would aim to present that information by July 1. Commissioners said they will consider the evidence before making any budgetary commitment in the 2026 process.

Brandt said the treasurer’s office can justify three hires because the office handles large volumes of out‑of‑state title work and dealer processing; she also noted the state system is still stabilizing and her office is working with IT and the state. Several commissioners emphasized they want an evidence‑based justification and noted that countywide budget direction asked departments to propose status‑quo personnel plans for 2026 unless supported by data.

No formal hiring motion was adopted; the board’s directive was to return with the requested analyses for consideration during the 2026 budget cycle.","Treasurer requested three full‑time hires to help with new motor‑vehicle system and sustained line volume; commissioners asked for more evidence and directed staff to return with workflow and comparative data by July 1.",{"_33":99,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":100,"_41":101,"_43":102,"_45":103,"_47":104,"_49":105,"_51":106,"_53":107,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":108,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":109,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6195388,"Pennington County emergency officials press Black Hills Energy for local detail as utility plans preemptive power shutoffs",2053,1633000,3686000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3862571-a281d6deaa773115facf0df7697d9a51&start=1633&end=3686","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3862571-a281d6deaa773115facf0df7697d9a51/thumbnail_1633000.jpg","/articles/6195388/Pennington-County/South-Dakota/Pennington-County-emergency-officials-press-Black-Hills-Energy-for-local-detail-as-utility-plans-preemptive-power-shutoffs","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6195388-d7bd59783e70b520963a095615b69d56/orig.mp4?Expires=1771169300&Signature=PjQ2Oqu2FlqqAO723vJzeySevuIAmrBvds8TZ80jX5tZrLUgQdjpsK53jV8DLWx4UWH8xBRT1hO4PgEs5M048N6Bj0EN3cB~mRh5cr8WUqp6TNkKrtJKYb2TDHLJQJmZ6Nr2KqoS-urLKuaR9PtEWZJKgvIMUvvGLvzdlcATaIt0vB0xIVM~7BE9Pw5gRl7pw8VMbgGaHFQ8Jy5MVxGKbplcHD20to1hKnsQawtp~BQgugrCKoroK~MO6uLccQOSiSmXRtJrwQZ~2ZJMfekVBomn7LmV1-a7VaIhitmrUFWXcmuJIXqjtYhhjsuICYsnGNmgbp0XKIhTDpyv6P2kDQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Pennington County emergency management officials told the Board of Commissioners on June 17 that Black Hills Energy’s plan to use preemptive, weather‑driven public safety power shutoffs could cause serious local consequences if outages last beyond a day.

Dustin Willett, the county’s director of emergency management, said the county has not yet received enough detail from the utility to map likely impacts and prepare response and support operations. \"Long‑duration power loss is over 24 hours,\" Willett said, stressing that outages of that length raise acute concerns about people who rely on electrically powered medical devices, refrigerated medicine and food, electric well pumps, and telecommunication reliability.

The discussion followed a detailed briefing from Willett and a presentation by Black Hills Energy Vice President Steven Dunn. Dunn told commissioners the company considers public safety power shutoffs a last‑resort tool and has been developing localized criteria that combine weather station data, fuel‑load modeling and other risk metrics. \"A public safety power shutoff is not like the first lever that we look to pull,\" Dunn said, and he described company efforts to refine notifications and to limit the customer count and duration of any shutdowns.

Willett and county officials urged more two‑way collaboration. Willett said emergency staff are working to map medically fragile residents and critical infrastructure so the county can estimate the \"course of harm\" and determine the scale of logistics — bottled water, reception centers, sheltering and communications — that a long outage might require. He noted the county’s planning assumption from past disasters that roughly 8% of an affected population will need direct assistance during a major event.

Dunn said Black Hills Energy is expanding its weather‑monitoring network and working with meteorologists to refine decisions and give customers as much advance notice as possible — he said the company aims for a 72‑hour forecast window where feasible and will issue multiple notifications as conditions develop. He also described technical options the utility is pursuing to limit customer impacts, such as sectionalizing lines and targeting smaller areas rather than broad geographic zones.

County officials pressed for specifics they said are necessary for local planning: which circuits or neighborhoods would be candidates for de‑energizing based on specific weather station triggers, how many customers might be affected in those zones, which water systems and wastewater lift stations lack backup power, and how telecommunication and cellular services would hold up during outages. Dunn said Black Hills Energy has shared data in meetings and on a limited basis, and that the company is building an external web portal and outage‑mapping tools customers can use to assess risk for individual service points.

Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Mark Hughes and county 911 Deputy Director Stephanie Olson said advance coordination is essential. Olson described the county’s plan to route non‑emergency public information calls to 2‑1‑1 during the holiday and to use call‑handling tools and live links to push maps and preparedness guidance. Hughes said the Sheriff’s Office has historically focused enforcement and outreach in border areas where municipal fireworks and county allowances differ; he urged more consistent public messaging from all partners.

Willett said some open questions are legal and financial: who pays for large logistical efforts if long outages trigger distributions, sheltering or medical evacuations, and what liability exposures arise when utilities de‑energize lines as wildfire mitigation. Dunn said insurers and the electric industry have raised similar issues nationwide and that cost tradeoffs are part of the broader policy conversation.

The commissioners did not take formal votes on the utility’s plan. Several commissioners praised the utility’s engagement but echoed Willett’s call for more granular, shared data so county departments can prepare targeted mitigation and response actions. Willett said the county will continue to press for datasets linking medically dependent residents, critical water and lift stations, and telecommunications nodes to Black Hills Energy’s proposed shutoff zones so planners can finalize logistics, communications and funding contingencies.","County emergency management warned that preemptive power shutdowns could cause cascading life‑safety and infrastructure problems; Black Hills Energy said shutoffs would be a last‑resort tool and pledged more outreach and localized data sharing.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Commission appoints Denise Maher to 4‑H advisory board

Commission approves personnel step increases for recent hires after debate over timing and budget control

Pennington County treasurer seeks three hires; commissioners ask for data, pause on queuing technology

Pennington County emergency officials press Black Hills Energy for local detail as utility plans preemptive power shutoffs