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SIOUX FALLS, S.D. 鈥� South Dakota lawmakers have agreed to replace one of the nation鈥檚 oldest prisons 鈥� one that predates the state itself.

Legislators in a special session on Tuesday night narrowly passed a bill to spend $650 million to build a 1,500-bed men鈥檚 prison and close a penitentiary built 140 years ago when the state was part of the Dakota Territory. It will be the most expensive taxpayer-funded project since the state was founded in 1889.

鈥淔ew things that we鈥檝e done are as significant as what we鈥檙e doing here today,鈥� Republican Gov. Larry Rhoden said before signing the bill.

South Dakota is imposing聽harsher criminal punishments聽and聽spending money聽on new criminal justice facilities at a time when Democrat-led states are pursuing more lenient policies and even聽closing prisons.

The state鈥檚 new prison, like the old one, will be in Sioux Falls, where the municipal services needed to support it are in place and trained corrections workers are available.

Lawmakers have been debating for years whether to build a new prison, given overcrowding at the old site and serious problems including inmate deaths, fights and drug smuggling. In addition to being larger, the new prison will have a modern design that will help alleviate those problems, officials said.

Some legislators blamed the Corrections Department secretary for trouble at the penitentiary. Her recent resignation prompted increased support for construction of a new prison.

Winning approval for the project is seen as a victory for Rhoden, who has focused on it since taking over the state鈥檚 top office when former Gov. Kristi Noem left to join the Trump administration. Rhoden is expected to run for reelection in 2026.

After an $825 million prison proposal failed in this year鈥檚 annual legislative session, Rhoden created a task force of lawmakers and state officials to come up with a feasible plan for a new facility.

鈥淵ou could say a lot of things about this process; I would not call it rushed,鈥� said Lieutenant Gov. Tony Venhuizen, who chaired the summer task force.

A truth-in-sentencing bill that requires some violent offenders to serve the full length of their sentences before parole has contributed to South Dakota鈥檚 overcrowding problem, according to a consultant鈥檚聽report. The state may need to spend up to $2 billion within the next decade to adequately handle the increasing inmate population, the report stated.

Proponents of the new prison argued that rehabilitative programming, mental health support and work opportunities require more space than is available in the current facility.

Construction is estimated to require four years.