Description of Initiated Measure 25 on the ballot
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HURON — Young men and women would pay lower tuition and have the opportunity to enroll in more courses and training at South Dakota’s four technical institutes if voters pass Initiated Measure 25 in November, a proponent said.
IM 25 would raise $20 million — to be directed to a separate fund — through a voluntary tax on tobacco product sales, said Doug Balvin of Huron, who spoke in favor of it at Saturday’s election forum in Huron.
South Dakota’s technical school tuition is $235 per credit hour, or about $100 more than some of the neighboring states.
IM 25 would provide for more scholarships and hopefully keep more young people in the state to fill openings in the state’s workforce, he said.
But opponent Dan Nelson of Sioux Falls said it’s bad tax policy because it’s a tax on a small group of people for the benefit of others. If South Dakotans are serious about tobacco cessation, the money raised from increasing the price of cigarettes and chewing tobacco should be spent on that, Nelson said.