Document Type

Circular

Publication Date

6-1940

Department

Agricultural Economics Department

Circular Number

29

Keywords

Tax, School, Counties, House Joint Resolution Number 10, Land Grants

Description

In 1889, when South Dakota was admitted into the Union, the Federal government granted the State 3,417,922 acres of land, the proceeds from the sale of which were to be placed in what is called the Permanent School Fund. Income from the investment of this Fund and from the lease of unsold school lands is apportioned to the schools of the State for support. During the past, most of the Fund has been invested through the counties in farm mortgages, which investment, in recent years, has proven uncertain because many mortgages have been foreclosed upon. House Joint Resolution No. 10, upon which the citizens of South Dakota will vote in November 1940, proposes to allow the various counties to transfer lands upon which Fund money has been loaned to the State in lieu of the principal borrowed. This study is primarily concerned with this amendment, and, to insure an adequate background of the whole situation, an inquiry was conducted into the growth, investment policies, and extent of financial support rendered the schools of the State from Interest and Income Fund apportionments. Primary attention, however, is given to a discussion of House Joint Resolution No.10, circumstances leading to its formulation, its implications and a critical observation of these implications. The final section of this study comprises an analysis to the effects of the Resolution and some suggested changes in the administration of the Permanent School Fund and the Department of School and Public Lands. Most of the information used in this study was obtained either directly or indirectly from records in the office of the Department of School and Public Lands, from biennial reports of the Department, and from the special reports prepared by the Department for the 1939 session of the legislature. In addition, circulars prepared by proponents and opponents of the Resolution, the Constitution of the State of South Dakota, the Session Laws of the State, the 1939 Code, and reports from Departments in neighboring states were helpful sources of information.

Pages

19

Format

application/pdf

Type

text

Language

en

Publisher

South Dakota State State College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, Agricultural Experiment Station

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