HURON, S.D. — Residents and legislators at a Huron Chamber governmental affairs forum pressed lawmakers Friday to preserve funding and statutory functions of the South Dakota State Library, warning cuts would reduce interlibrary loans and services used by schools, home‑school families and state employees.

At the podium, Michelle Bennett, a Huron Public Library patron, asked directly whether legislators support “repealing the library” and cutting its budget. Representative Lana Greenfield said she has “no appetite whatsoever in cutting the library funding.” Greenfield, who chairs the House education committee, said she relies on interlibrary loans from the State Library from her years as a high‑school English teacher and described the library as “a focal point” for small communities.

Senator Wheeler told the audience the issue has reached many lawmakers. “Everybody that I talk to, both sides of Republicans and Democrats … talk about the fact that people want to stay at the library,” he said, adding that he would “fight vigorously against any cut to the state library.” Wheeler provided a budget figure during the discussion, saying the State Library’s funding sheet appeared to show about $1,300,000 in state money and a like amount in federal match money; he said loss of those funds would affect access statewide.

Nut graf: The forum centered on how proposed budget decisions at the state level could change services that local libraries provide. Patrons described how the State Library supports interlibrary lending and collections that smaller school libraries cannot maintain; legislators said final budget cuts are not settled until late in the session and indicated they had heard strong public opposition.

In the body of the forum, several attendees described the practical effects of reductions. Diane Cropper, a former Friends of the Huron Public Library president, told lawmakers she discovered the State Library is administered under the South Dakota Department of Education and said neighboring North Dakota was proposing a 14.7% increase to its state library budget in the same year South Dakota faces reductions. She added that home‑school families and small libraries rely on interlibrary loan systems administered through the State Library.

Representative Van Diepen, a first‑term lawmaker on the education and local government committees, said the library issue “affects hundreds of thousands of people statewide” and warned budget decisions will be finalized very late in the session. Van Diepen described competing budget pressures, saying the legislature faces a multi‑million‑dollar shortfall this year and that lawmakers must weigh many priorities when writing the final budget.

Several legislators encouraged continued public advocacy: Senator Wheeler said he has collected postcards in his office from constituents and urged residents to keep contacting lawmakers. Greenfield said she has received handwritten letters from local students and described the postcards and letters as influential. Multiple speakers also emphasized that the State Library provides materials and research resources used by small public and school libraries across the state.

Ending: Lawmakers at the forum did not announce any committee votes or final budget decisions. Multiple legislators told the audience that the budget outcome would not be known until the final weeks of session and encouraged continued constituent contact; they said they have heard the public’s concerns and, in their view, the message has been received.