Commissioner Chris Nelson was elected chairman of the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission today, Jan. 4, 2021, at the commission’s regular meeting in Pierre, South Dakota. Commissioner Kristie Fiegen was elected vice chairperson. The third member of the panel is Commissioner Gary Hanson...(read more)

South Dakota Public Utilities Commissioner Kristie Fiegen was elected to serve as president of Southwest Power Pool’s Regional State Committee (RSC) throughout 2021. The committee, which provides collective state regulatory agency input on matters of regional importance related to the development and operation of bulk electric transmission, is not new to Fiegen as she has previously held the positions of vice president, treasurer and secretary. The committee also includes retail regulatory commissioners from agencies in Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Texas...(read more)

South Dakota Public Utilities Commissioner Gary Hanson took the oath of office on Jan. 4, 2021, marking the official start to his fourth term on the PUC. Hanson’s longtime friend, Judge Larry Long, administered the oath at a private ceremony in Lincoln County...(read more)

The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission granted PUC staff’s request to close docket GW20-002 addressing insolvency concerns for licensed grain buyer and grain warehouse Kingsburg Grain & Feed, LP of Springfield, South Dakota, at the commission’s regular meeting on March 5 in Pierre. This action concludes many months of work by the company, PUC staff and other interested parties to minimize the impacts of Kingsburg’s insolvency. Through the efforts and cooperation of those involved, a successful resolution was reached resulting in no losses to producers or creditors and maintaining a fully operational facility in the community through the sale of the Kingsburg to Lesterville Feed and Grain Inc...(read more)

Beginning on April 24, South Dakotans are encouraged to start using 10-digit dialing (605 area code + phone number) to make all local phone calls. This transition is a necessary first step in the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) move to establish 988 as a new three-digit dialing code for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and will be required beginning as early as October 24, 2021, and no later than July 15, 2022, depending on your telephone provider...(read more)

The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission is celebrating National Lineman Appreciation Day on April 18 by encouraging South Dakotans to thank the men and women who work to ensure the safe and reliable delivery of electricity throughout our state and across the country...(read more)

The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission warns natural gas customers to expect higher prices this heating season and suggests South Dakotans take steps now to keep bills manageable this winter. South Dakota natural gas customers may already be seeing higher per therm charges on their bills and as temperatures drop, the bill impact will grow...(read more)

Beginning Oct. 24, mandatory 10-digit dialing will start to take effect across South Dakota. On and after this date, you must dial the area code + telephone number for all local calls. Local calls dialed with only seven digits may not be completed. Instead, a recording may inform you that your call cannot be completed as dialed...(read more)

The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission wants South Dakotans to be aware that all major mobile carriers, including AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile, plan to phase out their 3G networks in 2022. The decommissioning of 3G networks, which rely on older technology, is part of a larger plan that will allow providers to focus more of their resources on building out newer networks, like 5G, to meet consumer demands instead of maintaining an older one. As a result of this change, older phones that require 3G networks to operate will lose service...(read more)