At the end of the Mike Rounds Administration, South Dakota's cost of living was 98.5% of the national average.
At the end of the second quarter of this year, South Dakota's cost of living was 100.8% of the national average. In our region, living is cheaper in Nebraska, Iowa, Wyoming, and Montana.
Thus, according to data from the Council for Community and Economic Research posted by the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center, under Governor Dennis Daugaard, the relative cost of living in South Dakota has increased by more than two percentage points, to within one percentage point of the cost of living in North Dakota and Minnesota.
Any number of factors could have contributed to this increase in the cost of living, like lack of local food production and manufacturing increasing our reliance on imported goods, or perhaps low wages depressing economic growth and business creation to spur competition. But since our candidates like to take credit for investment and imaginary jobs. Will Governor Daugaard take credit for raising the cost of living in South Dakota?
| Second Quarter 2014 Cost of Living | ||||||||
| State | Rank | Index | Grocery | Housing | Utilities | Transport | Heath | Misc |
| Mississippi | 1 | 86.2 | 90.1 | 71.8 | 86.8 | 94.9 | 91.3 | 91.8 |
| Tennessee | 2 | 89.3 | 93.5 | 76.3 | 91.8 | 93.8 | 89.4 | 95.4 |
| Idaho | 3 | 90 | 93.1 | 75 | 85.7 | 100.8 | 101.1 | 96 |
| Oklahoma | 4 | 90.6 | 92.6 | 79.5 | 95.2 | 94.4 | 95.5 | 94.9 |
| Indiana | 5 | 90.9 | 92.3 | 79.6 | 94.6 | 100.2 | 94.8 | 94 |
| Utah | 6 | 91.6 | 96.9 | 86.1 | 88.7 | 94.4 | 92 | 93.7 |
| Arkansas | 7 | 91.8 | 91.4 | 83.9 | 96.1 | 90.7 | 87.1 | 98 |
| Kentucky | 8 | 92 | 93.9 | 78.1 | 98.5 | 101.8 | 92.6 | 96.5 |
| Michigan | 9 | 92.1 | 94.8 | 80.3 | 97.3 | 100.2 | 95.1 | 95 |
| New Mexico | 10 | 92.1 | 94.6 | 77.4 | 89.5 | 100.9 | 98.8 | 99 |
| Nebraska | 11 | 92.3 | 97.2 | 82.9 | 97.1 | 95.5 | 97.3 | 94.2 |
| Alabama | 12 | 92.4 | 99.8 | 79.4 | 100.6 | 95 | 86.9 | 96.9 |
| Texas | 13 | 92.5 | 90.1 | 84.3 | 94.2 | 96.7 | 94.7 | 97.4 |
| Kansas | 14 | 92.5 | 94.4 | 84.6 | 96.8 | 94.2 | 97.4 | 95.3 |
| Iowa | 15 | 92.8 | 94.5 | 87.2 | 90.7 | 96.6 | 96.8 | 95 |
| Georgia | 16 | 92.9 | 100.9 | 80.3 | 93.7 | 97.7 | 95.8 | 97 |
| Missouri | 17 | 93.4 | 98.9 | 79.4 | 106.2 | 95.7 | 98 | 96.9 |
| Wyoming | 18 | 94 | 96.6 | 95.2 | 99.4 | 91.6 | 98.8 | 90.6 |
| Louisiana | 19 | 94 | 98.1 | 88.1 | 91.1 | 96 | 95.3 | 97 |
| Ohio | 20 | 94.3 | 99.9 | 83 | 100 | 101.1 | 96.5 | 96.2 |
| South Carolina | 21 | 95.7 | 105.4 | 81.4 | 106.1 | 94.3 | 98.3 | 99.8 |
| West Virginia | 22 | 96 | 95.2 | 94.6 | 91.4 | 100.2 | 97.3 | 96.9 |
| Illinois | 23 | 96.2 | 96.8 | 92.5 | 94.4 | 105.9 | 101.4 | 94.8 |
| North Carolina | 24 | 97 | 103 | 86.1 | 100 | 98.5 | 106.5 | 100.2 |
| Virginia | 25 | 97.1 | 97.2 | 92 | 103.4 | 92.8 | 99 | 100.4 |
| Wisconsin | 26 | 97.5 | 98 | 88.7 | 98.9 | 102.2 | 109.9 | 100.2 |
| Montana | 27 | 99.4 | 102.9 | 111.6 | 87.9 | 86.2 | 105.1 | 96.1 |
| Florida | 28 | 99.8 | 103.6 | 95.1 | 102 | 103.1 | 98.3 | 100.1 |
| Arizona | 29 | 100 | 100.9 | 100.5 | 97 | 98.4 | 101.9 | 100.5 |
| Nevada | 30 | 100.8 | 106.7 | 95.6 | 86.5 | 106.6 | 96.7 | 105.1 |
| South Dakota | 31 | 100.8 | 103.1 | 104.5 | 96.9 | 92.6 | 98.6 | 101.4 |
| Colorado | 32 | 101.2 | 96.1 | 110.9 | 91 | 99.4 | 103.7 | 99 |
| North Dakota | 33 | 101.4 | 103.4 | 105.2 | 92.3 | 101.2 | 107.9 | 99.2 |
| Minnesota | 34 | 101.6 | 105.5 | 97.1 | 87.4 | 100.7 | 104.5 | 107.9 |
| Pennsylvania | 35 | 101.9 | 102.7 | 98.7 | 110 | 100.5 | 96 | 103.1 |
| Washington | 36 | 104.2 | 101.8 | 110 | 87.2 | 106.4 | 115.7 | 103.2 |
| Delaware | 37 | 105.4 | 108.7 | 96 | 114 | 103 | 100.8 | 110.4 |
| Maine | 38 | 108.1 | 96.8 | 118.5 | 83.6 | 107.8 | 122 | 110 |
| New Hampshire | 39 | 114.8 | 100.9 | 125.2 | 124.7 | 97.4 | 119 | 115.3 |
| Maryland | 40 | 117.5 | 108.6 | 170.6 | 100.9 | 101.6 | 90.9 | 94.1 |
| Vermont | 41 | 117.6 | 103.7 | 140.4 | 124 | 107.9 | 108.1 | 108.5 |
| Rhode Island | 42 | 122.4 | 108.2 | 135.1 | 124.8 | 104 | 119.2 | 124.9 |
| Oregon | 43 | 123.8 | 113.8 | 158.9 | 91.9 | 113.3 | 115.5 | 114.9 |
| New Jersey | 44 | 124 | 103.7 | 160.5 | 114.4 | 107.4 | 105.4 | 115.4 |
| Massachusetts | 45 | 124.1 | 109.3 | 153.6 | 116.5 | 108.6 | 113.5 | 116.5 |
| California | 46 | 127.8 | 115.3 | 176.1 | 111.9 | 115.8 | 111.7 | 106.4 |
| New York | 47 | 131.8 | 111.7 | 189.8 | 106.5 | 111.3 | 105.1 | 113.7 |
| Alaska | 48 | 132.2 | 130.5 | 149.4 | 160.1 | 108.6 | 144.6 | 118 |
| District of Columbia | 49 | 138.2 | 108.7 | 242.5 | 96.6 | 103.7 | 97.7 | 99.5 |
| Connecticut | 50 | 141.6 | 115.1 | 204.4 | 128.8 | 117 | 107.9 | 121.2 |
| Hawaii | 51 | 158.9 | 157.4 | 206 | 224.9 | 125.3 | 113.3 | 122 |
Yep, what I've said all along, there's really not much of a difference in the cost of living between SD and MN. SD is not even in the top 25 cheapest states to live. Look at the housing between the two states - SDs right up there at 104.5 versus MN at a less painful 97.1. Hey, I thought the SD cost of living was so much lower than other states! Ouch for SD - high cost of AND low wages! At least with MN you get competitive wages.
Good news though for teachers! We are not number 50, we be numbar 48....Winning!! http://wallethub.com/edu/best-and-worst-states-for-teachers/7159/
daugaard fails at cost of living, welfare use increased, cover-up for rounds, pointing finger at rounds, oversight of "archive" month while not pressing the regents to come clean with anything, pointing finger at regents, allowing jackley to cover-up rounds, benda, joop activities, "reform" of criminal justice system ignoring causation and addiction, not appointing a special prosecutor, not influencing GOAC tidelmann et al. to investigate, I could easily go on.
WISMER GO AFTER THIS GUY!!
oh, ignoring 48,000 resident's Medicaid expansion needs for obstructionist political purposes, and not supporting 39,000 workers for a minimum wage.
oh,oh, ignoring the tribes' debates, ect. 80,000 residents right there.