South Dakota
South Dakota's data-center fight became a defining 2026 electoral issue: after data-center subsidies died in the Legislature (HB1005, SB239) and the 'Data Center Bill of Rights' (SB135) plus HB1038 were enacted, NetChoice/PAC money flooded the June 2 GOP primary, the Sioux Falls mayoral runoff and Lincoln County races, and Applied Digital tied its $5B Deuel County campus to the election outcome (South Dakota Sentinel, Stateside).
ILens Signals
Civic/Governance Barriers activates on meaningful 2026 race (C3) — governance instruments on the electoral, legislative, and regulatory surface (protocol §10; Overview Civic breakout). Capital Flows / Insurability is a dominant stressor: the entire 2026 fight was over 50-year tax breaks (HB1005), a construction/equipment tax-rebate program (SB239), and the SB135 'Data Center Bill of Rights' full-cost-recovery regime, alongside hundreds of thousands in PAC money (the pro-data-center South Dakotans for Common Sense PAC took a $150K NetChoice contribution; Forge the Future spent ~$521K on 17 candidates), plus Applied Digital signaling its ~$5B project could hinge on election outcomes — a textbook cost-shift/stranded-incentive and investor-risk-pricing story (News From The States / SD Searchlight (PAC finance), DCD). Energy/Power (SB135's 10 MW cost-recovery threshold) and Water/Geology (utility-shortage protections) are also central (Stateside).
IIKey 2026 Races
Yes — multiple. Data centers, 50-year tax breaks and ratepayer protection ran through the June 2, 2026 GOP legislative primary (16 sitting lawmakers lost; the Freedom Caucus was gutted), the June 23 Sioux Falls mayoral runoff (Christine Erickson vs. Jamie Smith; Erickson took a $100,000 PAC check from Driving South Dakota and was backed by data-center/utility donors), and Lincoln County Commission races (Amy Harms beat Tiffani Landeen 63-37; Joni Ekstrum beat Mike Mathis 58-42) (South Dakota Sentinel).
IIIMoratorium · Ban Status
No statewide moratorium; SB 232 (a moratorium through June 30, 2027 on hyperscale data centers, ~50 MW threshold) was Introduced but did NOT pass — Globe Street lists SD among states where a moratorium proposal failed (Rockefeller Institute, Globe Street). Instead the enacted SB 135 preserves local authority: it 'prevents the state from preempting local laws limiting, banning or regulating data centers' (Stateside). Locally, Lincoln County considered but rejected a hyperscale moratorium in February 2026 (South Dakota Sentinel).
IVRatepayer · Cost-Shift Legislation
Yes — enacted. SB 135, the 'Data Center Bill of Rights' (signed by Gov. Larry Rhoden), requires data centers with peak demand of 10 MW+ to cover all costs of meeting their power demand, including costs if the data center leaves, and bars state preemption of local data-center regulation (Stateside). HB 1038 (signed) lets the SD Public Utilities Commission require companies to pay for a service-cost study for 10 MW+ data-center customers (Stateside). Subsidy bills FAILED: HB1005 (50-year sales/use tax exemption) died in committee; SB239 (equipment write-off) failed 16-17 twice (South Dakota Sentinel).
VBallot Measures
None identified on the ballot. A local referendum effort — 'Let Sioux Falls Vote' (Samantha Scarlata, Amanda Kendall) turned in 5,012 signatures against ~6,704 needed — was rejected Jan. 30, 2026, so no data-center measure reached the ballot (South Dakota Sentinel).
VITop Contested Sites
Applied Digital Deuel County / Toronto AI campus (~$5B): developer said it is 'unlikely to go forward' and may return 'depending on the outcome of the 2026 elections' (DCD — Toronto unlikely, South Dakota Sentinel). Gemini Data Center SD, LLC 164-acre site between Sioux Falls and Brandon (Minnehaha County) near Veterans Parkway/Rice St.: pending approvals, could still be denied (DCD — 164-acre Sioux Falls).
VIITalent · Workforce
Not a leading SD stressor; the fight centered on tax subsidies, ratepayer protection and local control rather than labor organizing or jobs-delivered disputes.
VIIIData Center Cluster Size
Emerging and small: DataCenterMap lists ~4 facilities, all around Sioux Falls, with the large prospective adds being Applied Digital's Deuel County campus and the Gemini/Sioux Falls 164-acre site (DCD — Applied Digital Deuel).
IXKey Quote
Applied Digital has said its $5 billion Deuel County AI campus may come back "depending on the outcome of [the 2026] elections." (South Dakota Sentinel).