April 26, 2023

Steve Westra, commissioner of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, will be stepping down from that position, an announcement that comes one day after the state’s annual economic development conference.

The resignation is effective May 22.

“When I took on this role, I never expected that it would be defined by a global pandemic. Gov. Noem trusted the people of South Dakota and our business community to make the right decisions, and we have emerged with record-breaking business investment,” Westra said in a statement. “We had more business development in the last four years than in the previous 10 combined. I am grateful to the governor for her trust in me and her leadership of our state, and it has been an honor to serve on her team. There are more opportunities for our future than ever before.”

At the conference on Tuesday, Westra reported on 37 “project wins” for his office in 2022. He has served as GOED commissioner since 2019. Before that, he was chief operating officer of Hegg Cos. and served in the South Dakota House of Representatives from 2013 to 2016, as well as on the state tourism advisory board.

“South Dakotans are building the strongest economy in America with the lowest unemployment rate of all time. Steve helped provide the level playing field to make that possible,” Norm said. “I want to thank him for his leadership on behalf of the people of South Dakota.”

Travis Dovre will serve as interim commissioner of GOED. He serves as the fiscal officer for Noem’s office, a role he also held in the Gov. Dennis Daugaard administration beginning in 2015, and also oversees the fiscal operations of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, Department of Tourism and Department of Tribal Relations. Previously, he worked for GOED as assistant finance director, loan officer and grant administrator.