Who Gets to Decide What Art South Dakota Taxpayers Fund?

It is now 63 days until the November 3 General Election and 17 days until absentee voting begins. At this time of year, candidates are flooded with surveys, questionnaires, and invitations to attend events from a host of advocacy, lobbying, and interest organizations.

Yesterday, I received one from Arts South Dakota. Candidates are asked to complete the survey so the organization can “get to know you and your priorities.” Arts South Dakota describes itself as a legally organized non-profit and nonpartisan organization. In the letter, it states that it publishes candidate responses and advocates to legislators and other government officials on arts issues.

I learned during my previous campaign two years ago that organizations such as Arts South Dakota can use candidates’ responses in newsletters, digital advertisements, postcards, voting guides, websites, and social media. While there is nothing inherently wrong with an organization informing its members about where candidates stand, candidates should understand that once they provide their responses, they no longer control the narrative on how those responses are presented or used in advocacy efforts.

So today, I thought I would take a closer look at one organization that wants to know my perspective on the role of the arts and government in South Dakota.

Who Is Behind Arts South Dakota?

When I opened the letter, I flipped it over and immediately looked at the list of Arts South Dakota’s Board of Directors. One name immediately caught my attention: former District 15 State Senator Reynold Nesiba of Sioux Falls. Arts South Dakota currently lists Nesiba, a Democrat, among its 15-member Board of Directors.

I recognized the name because Nesiba's Political Action Committee (PAC), “The Majority Project,” which identifies itself as an organization dedicated to electing and supporting South Dakota Senate Democrats, contributed a total of $7,000 in 2024 to the campaign of our very own District 27 State Senator Red Dawn Foster (1).

Recall Senator Foster introduced Senate Bill 166 during the 2021 legislative session. The bill, which Foster introduced, proposed expanding South Dakota’s hate-crime statute to include gender identity and identification as a Native American Two-Spirit among the protected characteristics. Her bill would have made it a Class 6 felony when a person, with malicious intent to intimidate or harass another person or group, caused physical injury, defaced or damaged property, or threatened to commit those acts, punishable up to 2 years in state prison, a fine of up to $4,000, or both. Thankfully, she is term-limited and will no longer be our state senator starting in January 2027.

After reviewing the board list, I decided to take a deeper look at the political affiliations of its members. Based on my review of statewide voter-registration records, I found that the 15-member board consists of 10 Democrats, 3 Republicans, and 2 Independents.

Yet, at the bottom of its website, Arts South Dakota describes itself as a

“non-partisan and non-profit service organization [that] advances the arts for South Dakotans and visitors by connecting, advocating, and educating.”

However, based on the political affiliations I found among its current board members, I believe voters are entitled to consider whether the organization reflects a politically balanced perspective. See below.

Back side of Arts South Dakota Candidate Survey on the Arts and Government with my handwritten notes. Received August 31, 2026.

How Much Is Government Spending on the Arts?

The Arts South Dakota questionnaire provides candidates with information about the South Dakota Arts Council, a state agency within the Department of Tourism. The questionnaire explains that the South Dakota Arts Council receives support from the State of South Dakota and the National Endowment for the Arts.

One question asks whether candidates are aware of the South Dakota Arts Council and its mission to advance South Dakota’s artistic and cultural vitality through funding, connections, and resources.

The survey then asks whether candidates believe the South Dakota Arts Council, under the Department of Tourism, should receive state funding.

Arts South Dakota also provides economic figures intended to demonstrate the return on the state’s investment in the arts. The questionnaire states that South Dakota Arts Council funding used to match federal funds benefited South Dakotans and generated $25.48 for every $1 invested by the state. It further states that in fiscal year 2027, the Arts Council will award more than $2.16 million in grant support, resulting in approximately $17.75 million in local spending (2).

Those numbers may sound impressive. But they don’t answer the fundamental question I have as a taxpayer:

Why should state government be involved in funding the arts in the first place?

The Arts South Dakota questionnaire states that the South Dakota Arts Council will provide approximately $2.6 million in support for grants and special arts initiatives in state fiscal year 2027. I decided to compare that figure with the actual South Dakota state budget.

According to the South Dakota Legislature's FY2027 appropriation, the Arts budget within the Department of Tourism totals $2,991,997. That amount consists of $1,535,707 in federal funds and $1,456,290 in Other Funds. No General Funds are appropriated for the Arts budget (3).

The Legislature's budget documents also specifically identify a $25,086 increase in Other Funds for State Art Grants to nonprofit organizations. The legislative budget brief explains that these funds are derived from the tourism promotion tax and are used by the South Dakota Arts Council for grants and services to artists, arts organizations, schools, and the public.

So why does Arts South Dakota cite approximately $2.6 million while the Legislature's FY2027 budget shows nearly $3 million in total funding for the Arts budget?

That is a question worth asking.

It is also important to understand what these budget categories mean. I don't want to misrepresent the state's accounting by claiming that the entire $2.99 million comes directly from the state's General Fund. It does not. The Legislature identified the funding separately as federal and Other Funds from taxpayers.

But that doesn't eliminate the fundamental question: Why should state government be involved in funding the arts in the first place?

The Legislature has established the South Dakota Arts Council in state law and placed it within the Department of Tourism. Therefore, my argument is not that the Legislature lacks the legal authority to fund the Arts Council. My question is whether it is a proper and necessary use of government resources.

And there is another issue that I believe is even more important:

Government is still picking winners and losers.

Regardless of whether the money is classified as federal, state, or Other Funds, government officials are involved in establishing the programs, setting the rules, evaluating applications, and determining which artists, organizations, and projects receive government-supported resources.

That matters.

When government decides that one artistic project is worthy of public support while another is not, it is making a judgment about which activities deserve government assistance.

Even if the money does not come directly from the state's General Fund, taxpayers should ask whether government should be in the business of making those decisions in the first place.

Artists and arts organizations should be free to express their creativity and promote their work. South Dakotans should also be free to support the artists and artistic organizations they value.

What I question is whether government should use its authority—and the resources entrusted to it—to decide which artists, organizations, and projects receive public support. That is the distinction that matters to me. I am not opposed to the arts.

I am questioning government involvement in deciding which arts receive government support.

Art Is Subjective

I enjoy and appreciate the visual and performing arts. I have personally participated in the performing arts, and enjoy viewing an artist's original masterpiece in a gallery or museum. I believe the arts reflect our culture, history, diversity, and values of a society.

Over the years, I have collected Native American artwork, including prints from Lakota artists Elton Three Stars and Daniel Long Soldier. I appreciate the creativity and craftsmanship that artists bring to their work, reflecting everything that is good, beautiful, and true. But art is also subjective.

What I consider beautiful or meaningful, someone else may not. What one person considers culturally significant, another person may consider political or ideological. That is precisely why government funding can become controversial.

On a recent visit to Pine Ridge, I came across this mural painted on the back of the post office. The mural was painted by Lucky Salway (4).

What does EST.B.C stand for? (By Lucky Salway, April 21, 2022) Established Before Columbus, Established Before Cortez, Established Before Custer, Established Before Coronado, Established Before Crusaders, Established Before Calvary, Established Before Conquistadors, Established Before Colonization, Established Before Constitution, Established Before Congress, Established Before Courts, Established Before Catholicism, Established Before Christianity, Established Before Christ. (NOTE: It is unknown whether the artist was commissioned to paint this mural with taxpayer-funded dollars.)

Some people may look at this mural and see art. They may appreciate the hues of complementary colors, the geometric star pattern, and the way the artist uses lines to draw the viewer’s eye toward the focal point - a tepee and white buffalo.

However, that is not what I immediately saw. I saw a mural containing a message that I interpreted as political or ideological propaganda.

That raises a question I believe taxpayers deserve to have answered:

Is this the type of artwork that Arts South Dakota and the South Dakota Arts Council support with taxpayer dollars?

If taxpayer-supported resources are being used to support an artistic project, what oversight exists regarding how those funds are spent? Who establishes the criteria? Who determines whether a project receives funding? And how much discretion does the individual artist or organization have once a grant has been awarded?

These are questions I intend to ask if I am elected to the South Dakota Senate.

I Don’t Need a Questionnaire to Tell You Where I Stand

My mom and I have discussed these types of surveys and questionnaires before. Her recommendation was simple: throw them away. I couldn’t agree with her more. If people want to know what I stand for, they don’t need a questionnaire to tell them. They can read my blog. They can follow my campaign. They can contact me directly by email or phone and ask me. I believe voters deserve to hear directly from candidates—not through a questionnaire designed by an advocacy organization to control a candidate's narrative.

If elected to the South Dakota Senate, I will continue to scrutinize the state budget and examine every line item, such as the funding identified in the South Dakota Arts Council's nearly $3 million budget for the Arts and its four FTEs (full-time equivalents) to manage the program.

The question isn’t whether South Dakotans should appreciate the arts. Of course we should.

I am questioning government involvement in deciding which arts receive government support. I believe that is a legitimate question for every taxpayer—and one that deserves an honest debate.

And if I have the privilege of serving in the South Dakota Senate, as a fiscal conservative, I intend to ask these very questions taxpayers deserve answered. Have a great week.

Sources:

(1) The Majority Project - Donations to State Senator Foster

Pre-Primary Filing (May 20, 2024) https://sdcfr.sdsos.gov/Document.aspx?DocumentID=84564&type=doc

Pre-General Filing (October 21, 2024) https://sdcfr.sdsos.gov/Document.aspx?DocumentID=93398&type=doc

(2) Arts South Dakota 2026 Candidate Survey

https://artssouthdakota.org/state-candidates-survey-on-the-arts-and-government/

(3) South Dakota FY 2027 State Budget, Effective July 1, 2026 (See Page 24 for Arts Budget) https://bfm.sd.gov/budget/BiB/SD_BIB_FY2027.pdf

(4) https://www.truedescendants.com/blogs/news/what-does-est-b-c-stand-for