Roblox settlement, increased industrial zoning and more | July 14
By
Julia Stelter
Published July 14, 2026 at 12:40 PM CDT
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Below is a transcript of today’s podcast:
With SDPB News, I’m Julia Stelter in Sioux Falls. Today is Tuesday July 14; here are today’s stories
South Dakota is set to receive millions of dollars after settling with the popular online video game Roblox
Jackson Dircks reports
South Dakota and Roblox have reached a multi-million-dollar settlement. As part of the settlement, the gaming platform is requiring all users to undergo age verification. That’s to ensure children only have access to age-appropriate content. Parents will also have expanded control over their child’s use of the platform as part of the agreement
The settlement also tightens restrictions on chatbots, which have been at the center of controversy. Parents have alleged that predators have used Roblox chat features to communicate with and groom minors
In addition to those restrictions, Attorney General Marty Jackley says a feature of the settlement he hopes becomes “a national model.”
“Working with law enforcement on how we can partner with online companies to better protect our kids,” Jackley said
While other states are bringing charges against Roblox around individual child exploitation cases, that’s not been the case in South Dakota. That’s
“We’ve not had a specific ICAC sexual exploitation case that’s been brought. Concerns have been raised. I’ve talked directly with several attorneys general, I’m chairman of the AGs. It’s been happening in other states, but we’ve not brought that type of a prosecution. And I hope with this settlement we never have to.”
The state is expected to bring in a guaranteed $8.6 million. Those funds will be disbursed into the South Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force…the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Fund…and the Department of Education
Of $5 million given to the DOE, at least $1 million of the funds must be used to fund governmental and nonprofit after-school programs
Roblox will also underwrite a million-dollar awareness campaign focused on “online child safety,” specifically in relation to Roblox. Should Roblox fail to comply with the settlement, the state could pull in an additional $5.4 million
I’m SDPB’s Jackson Dircks
While gas prices are creeping back up nationwide, they remained mostly flat in South Dakota this last week
That’s according to the latest report from Gas Buddy. The national average rose by a dime last week – but South Dakota’s average rose by less than a cent
For the most part, gas prices had been trending downward since mid-May. The state’s average is still about 30 cents cheaper than it was a month ago
Analysts say this latest uptick is due to oil prices surging following the breakdown of the cease-fire between the U.S. and Iran. They expect more increases in the coming weeks – though likely not to the levels we saw earlier this year
Rapid City Regional Airport is experiencing record-breaking travel numbers though the first half of the year
The airport saw 206,000 enplanements through June – a record high for that time period. That’s according to airport executive director Patrick Dame
He says it’s a five percent increase in travelers over 2025 – which was the previous record-high
June was the busiest travel month for the airport so far this year
The Rapid City Council has approved an effort to expand heavy industrial zoning near a west side cement plant and mining operation
C.J. Keene reports…
Air quality alerts and dust falling are common for windy days on Rapid City’s west side, and many residents of the area’s neighborhoods take note of these problems as they arise
That made the hearing about the expansion of heavy industrial zoning for the area turn heads. Resident William Wagner contends the city has every right to deny the requested rezone
“Every single week, industrial blasting rattles our windows and cracks our foundations. Mining operators claim state-level permits give them a grandfathered right to destroy our properties. Their lawyers are wrong. Under South Dakota law, local police powers over public health and structural safety strictly supersede private commercial interest. Failure to enforce your own codes carries immediate civil consequences.”
One of the roadblocks facing residents comes from a 2000 law package that targets the state Cement Plant Commission, which changes zoning regulations for said cement plants
While there are challenges, one councilmember argues this whole process was done poorly by city leadership. That would be Ward 2 representative Bill Evans, who voted against the proposal
“I’m just doing this as sort of a protest vote so we start thinking ahead and maybe work with some of those people. So we have something to show for this mining rather than just a hillside.”
Evans argues if these plants are here to stay, it’s public interest to keep developers onside
“I remember what those neighborhoods looked like when I was in high school, and there’s an entire mountain that’s missing there. I think that, rather than just have approved these things and have (developers) think about reclaiming, we could use some creative thought with our planning and perhaps reuse some of those pits as amphitheaters, public parks, swimming facilities, other things. We need to be more creative with how we do these things and work with those developers
The mining operation is owned by Pete Lien and Sons, and the cement plant is a GCC facility. Evans was joined by Ward 5 Councilwoman Callie Meyer as the only no votes
I’m SDPB’s C.J. Keene in Rapid City
Some South Dakota libraries are seeing boosts from a dinosaur-themed summer reading program
It’s called the “Unearth a Story” program. The Doland Library in northeast South Dakota is among those seeing hundreds of kids take part
Natasha Noetlich is the library’s directory. She says over 100 people showed up to the kick-off event – quite a feat in a town of 195
“”I often have moms kind of joking with me that we had to plan our summer vacation around some of your programming, which I know is awful for the moms, but it makes me feel really great because it’s a priority in our community, and it’s a priority in our families.”
The library reports kids have read more than 11 thousand minutes through the program so far this summer
George Seamon is the state librarian. He says these programs help students improve literacy skills and avoid the summer slide
“This gives kids a chance to read for fun, and to read what they want. Sometimes in school you’re told what you have to read. This allows them to explore different genres, different topics that maybe otherwise they wouldn’t have in school.”
Officials say nationwide, more than 13 hundred libraries reported participating in this program last summer
South Dakota’s state government ended the fiscal year with a 69-million-dollar surplus. That’s a larger surplus than the state brought in the previous fiscal year
State officials say this surplus was fueled by budget reversions and revenues coming in higher than expected
The state brought in 30 million dollars in revenue above estimates, with the greatest chunk of that coming from sales taxes
The remaining 39 million dollars were spending reversions from state agencies. That’s when a state agency doesn’t spend money allocated in its budget. Of that – 32-million-dollars were unspent in the Department of Social Services budget
The surplus is required by state law to go into state reserve funds. They now total 325-million-dollars
And that’s your daily news update. Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram at “SDPB News,” and visit “SDPB.org/news” to stay up to date on our journalism as it comes in. As always, thank you for listening
