PIERRE, South Dakota, April 18 -- The South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation issued the following news release: The Department of Labor and Regulation is now accepting Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claim applications. Visit dlr.sd.gov/pua for filing instructions. A claimant can be compensated with the PUA benefit beginning Feb. 2, 2020, or the first week a claimant was unable to work as a result of COVID-19, whichever date is later. The last week this benefit is payable is th  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, April 15 -- The South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation issued the following news release: The Department of Labor and Regulation reminds unemployment claimants who have been placed on a temporary layoff related to COVID-19 that they must return to work if called back to remain eligible for benefits. Not returning to work when there is available work could be considered a "refusal of work" and potentially disqualify claimants from receiving reemployment assistance  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, April 15 -- The South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation issued the following news release: The Department of Labor and Regulation (DLR) has added a feature to allow unemployment insurance claimants to track the status of their initial claim online any time. "The status will show in green on the main screen when a claimant is logged in," said state Labor and Regulation Secretary Marcia Hultman. "We are hoping this new feature will reduce calls to our call center, a  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, April 17 -- The South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation issued the following news release: During the week of April 5 through April 11, a total of 6,152 initial weekly claims for unemployment benefits were filed with the Department of Labor and Regulation. This is a decrease of 1,986 claims over the prior week's total of 8,138. "Unemployment claimants who have been placed on a temporary layoff related to COVID-19 must return to work if they are called back to re  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, April 18 -- Gov. Kristi Noem, R-South Dakota, issued the following news release: Governor Kristi Noem announced that the South Dakota National Guard had selected locations in Sioux Falls and Rapid City to assist in the COVID-19 response. "South Dakota is ready to respond to the future peak of COVID-19 cases," Noem said. "We're thankful for the National Guard's hard work to help us surge our medical bed space capacity, fight COVID-19, and keep South Dakotans safe." The Si  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, April 14 -- Gov. Kristi Noem, R-South Dakota, issued the following news release on April 13: Governor Kristi Noem announced that South Dakota, with Sanford Health leading the effort, will be the first state with a comprehensive, statewide clinical trial to determine the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine in treating and preventing COVID-19. "From day one, I've said we're going to let the science, facts, and data drive our decision-making in South Dakota," said Noem. "Thr  more