(Dakota Radio Group News – Pierre, SD) A state lawmaker in South Dakota has agreed to repay a large chunk of the federal COVID money she received to run her preschool in Rapid City.
Attorney General Marty Jackley says Sen. Jessica Castleberry received over $600,000 that she used for her business.
Jackley says they will not ask the families to reimburse them for the other portion of the COVID funds Castleberry received.
Because she’s a state legislator, Castleberry wasn’t eligible to receive the COVID funds. But, Jackley says, she did spend the dollars appropriately.
Jackley says Castleberry has agreed to a payment plan.
In 2020, the South Dakota Supreme Court issued an advisory warning state lawmakers that it was unconstitutional for them to accept federal pandemic funding.
Castleberry was appointed to a vacant state Senate seat in 2019 and continues to serve.
