• PIERRE, S.D. (AP) -- South Dakota must take additional steps to train and attract people to fill the jobs needed to fuel the state's continued economic growth, Gov. Dennis Daugaard said Tuesday in his State of the State address kicking off the legislative session.
• The Republican governor said he plans to help school districts offer more technical courses, provide state scholarships for some students at South Dakota's four technical institutes and set up meetings around the state so business and community leaders can discuss ideas for workforce development.
• Daugaard acknowledged that a program he started two years ago to pay a company to recruit workers for South Dakota businesses didn't work out well. He said the state will instead renew its focus on a program that seeks to persuade former South Dakotans to return to work in the state, which has the nation's second-lowest unemployment rate at 3.6 percent.
• "Our low unemployment is a sign of our economic strength, but it also means it's difficult for employers to add more jobs, even if they have the business to justify it," the governor said.
• The governor also urged lawmakers to support proposed revisions in laws dealing with insurance regulation and bank taxes.
• However, much of the speech dealt with the state's growing economy. South Dakota is one of only 15 states that have recovered all the jobs lost during the recession, Daugaard said, noting that the state now has 10,000 more jobs than before the recession, a growth of 2.5 percent.
• "What is the state of our state today? The state of South Dakota is strong," Daugaard said.
• Legislative leaders said they liked Daugaard's focus on the state's strengths and its need for more trained workers.
• House Democratic Leader Bernie Hunhoff of Yankton said the minority party will work with Daugaard on workforce development, but he said key parts of the effort should involve funding school districts adequately and dealing with poverty. Schools cannot provide enough technical education because they haven't recovered from budget cuts made several years ago, he said.
• "We've just devastated the school districts' budgets," Hunhoff said.
• Senate Republican Leader Tim Rave of Baltic said South Dakota will always have trouble attracting workers because it's a rural state with cold winters, so he's

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