Openness and Transparency

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Openness and Transparency

By: Gov. Larry Rhoden

February 6, 2026

Being open and honest isn't hard to do. It may seem tough, but it's actually far easier to be direct and truthful. I'm a pretty straight shooter. Who has time to talk around an issue? The people of South Dakota deserve a Governor who's open, transparent, and honest - and that's what I aim to be every single day.

We recently had the annual News Media Day at the Capitol, the one day a year that a couple dozen extra reporters from small towns across South Dakota come to Pierre to meet with the Legislature. Every year, it's on a Thursday, because that's the day we have our weekly press conferences. I took the opportunity to have an honest discussion about how my administration is doing on openness and transparency.

I reminded the media that a year ago, I pledged that openness and responsiveness would be pillars of my administration. And then I put the question to them - what's going well, and where could we improve? And they offered meaningful feedback.

I appreciated that they told me that things are going well overall in this regard. Even more so, I appreciated the couple points of feedback for ways that my administration can still improve. We'll implement some of their suggestions, like working with agencies to get back to reporters more promptly - and when we can't implement those suggestions, we explained why. And that's how it should be.

That commitment extends far beyond the press. It extends to the people of South Dakota. I am not hard to find. I enjoy getting out into our communities and hearing from South Dakotans, like I did on my Open for Opportunity tour, and like I'm doing with my property tax town halls. By the way, we have more of those events coming to a community near you - check out Americans for Prosperity - South Dakota's Facebook page for details.

One more thing: when we communicate openly and responsively, we must also do so civilly. In my State of the State Address earlier this year, I asked the Legislature to join me in once again pledging to be civil in our discourse. None of us are perfect, but even when we disagree, we should do so without being disagreeable.

I had a recent lunch with legislative leadership in both chambers, and the conversation got somewhat direct on disagreement over some processes and policies. But even when we disagree, both sides listened to each other, and both sides felt comfortable sharing what we had to say. We even came to a far better understanding on some important points.

That kind of communication is a crucial part of our American political process, and it's only possible if we trust each other to be civil, open, and responsive. It's how we reach understanding, compromise when appropriate, and deliver the best possible results for the people of South Dakota. And in so doing, we will keep South Dakota strong, safe, and free.

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