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lenger Nick Nemec, a farmer and former state lawmaker, for a four-year term.
• The 48-year-old Nelson is a former secretary of state who, like Fiegen, was appointed about two years ago to fill a vacancy on the PUC.
• Democrats had criticized the commission for not doing enough to protect farmers and keep utilities costs low. Republicans countered that they have protected farmers the best they could under current law.
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• SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) -- South Dakota voters have rejected Gov. Dennis Daugaard's plan to give incentive grants to large construction projects.
• The Republican-controlled Legislature passed a bill last year at the governor's urging to provide grants to companies to get them to expand or relocate to South Dakota.
• The state Democratic party, however, said the estimated $16 million a year in grants would be better used to help fund schools. It gathered enough signatures to put the measure on the ballot for a public vote.
• The grants would have been paid for with 22 percent of the receipts from the contractor's excise tax.
• South Dakota for years has had a program that refunds construction taxes for large industrial projects, but it expires at the end of this year.
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• SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) -- South Dakota voters have approved a state constitutional amendment to require a balanced budget.
• Republican Gov. Dennis Daugaard proposed the amendment earlier this year, saying current language implies the budget must be balanced but doesn't require it.
• Two provisions limit state debt and provide for an emergency tax to wipe out any deficit.
• The amendment Daugaard proposed says the governor must propose -- and the Legislature must pass -- a budget in which spending does not exceed anticipated revenue.
• Opponents say the amendment is not needed and could encourage overly optimistic revenue estimates that lead to deficits.
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