South Dakota apologizes to transgender advocacy group, will pay $300K over cancelled contract

South Dakota will pay $300,000 and apologize to transgender advocacy groups after the state terminated its contract with the group.

Transformation Project Lawyers announced a settlement Monday’s move comes more than a year after the group filed a lawsuit against Gov. Kristi Noem (R) and the state health secretary over the termination of the contract.

The deal included $136,000 in federal funds for the organization to “hire and train community health workers to connect members of the LGBTQ community to health care,” according to a press release from the attorneys. That’s what it means.

The group said its contract with South Dakota was a “political liability” after conservative news outlets brought the group and one of its planned events to Noem’s attention in December 2022. claimed to have become the complaint. The group claimed in its complaint that the contract was “abruptly terminated” in December 2022 “purely based on national politics.”

“The contract was only terminated after conservative national media contacted state officials. In response to a potentially negative news cycle, the state canceled the TTP. [The Transformation Project] The complaint, filed in federal court in South Dakota, states, “Allegations of breach of contract were made to terminate the contract, issue a statement, and then attempt to apply the flimsiness of contract law to the state’s discriminatory conduct.” it is written like this.

Brenden Johnson, lead attorney representing the Transformation Project, said in a statement that the settlement “marks an important milestone in our continued commitment to civil rights advocacy.”

“We remain committed to celebrating the resilience of the LGBTQ community and vigorously defending their rights,” he said.

South Dakota Department of Health Secretary Melissa Magstadt signed a letter of apology to the organization dated Jan. 18. According to the Associated Press, Magstadt was no longer director when his contract was terminated in 2022.

“On behalf of the state of South Dakota, we apologize for the termination of the Transformation Project contract and for treating the Transformation Project differently than other organizations that contract with community health workers,” the apology said. it is written like this.

“I want to emphasize that all South Dakotans, regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, disability, age, or sex, are entitled to equal treatment under the law. South Dakota “The state is committed to ensuring that no one is excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or subjected to discrimination under any program, activity, or service provided by South Dakota,” she said. wrote.

Susan Williams, executive director of the Transformation Project, said the settlement “vindicated” the organization.

“The government has acknowledged what we knew on the day we learned of the termination: that we had not violated any procedures or in any way met the terms of the CHW contract. So we were vindicated,” Williams said. in a statement.

The Hill has reached out to the South Dakota Department of Health and Noem’s office for comment.