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cide on the pipeline since Nebraska's governor approved a new route last month. The State Department has authority over the project because it crosses an international border, but both sides on the issue expect Obama to make the final decision.
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• PIERRE, S.D. (AP) -- The South Dakota Senate has approved a measure that would provide financial incentives to encourage construction of wind power projects in the state.
• The Senate voted 26-7 to send the proposal to the House of Representatives.
• The bill would give a wind project an incentive payment roughly equal to 2 percent of the construction cost, but wind farms would pay higher taxes later after they begin operating.
• The bill's main sponsor, Sen. Larry Rhoden of Union Center, says an incentive payment is needed because South Dakota taxes applied during construction of a wind farm are far higher than those imposed in nearby states.
• But Sen. David Omdahl of Sioux Falls says he opposes incentives because such projects should stand on their own without government subsidies.
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• USDA says number of farms in ND, SD decreases
• SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture says the number of farms in North Dakota and South Dakota decreased in 2012 but the average size of each farm increased.
• According to the USDA, there were 300 fewer farms in South Dakota in 2012 compared to 2011. The total number of farms in 2012 was 31,000.
• South Dakota's average farm size was 1,408 acres, up 13 acres from the 2011 estimate of 1,395 acres.
• In North Dakota, the number of farms decreased by 200 to 31,600. The average farm size in 2012 was 1,253 acres, up from 1,245 acres the previous year.
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