# Hughes, South Dakota — #131 of 3,144 counties

> Liberty Moving composite score 7.57 of 10. FIPS 46065. Population 17,624. v4 — beta, 30 October 2026, sourced values.

About 17,600 people live in Hughes, South Dakota. It ranks #131 of 3,144 counties for liberty, and #35 of 66 in South Dakota. The combined sales tax is 4.2%, lower than in 92% of counties. Property tax takes about 1.03% of a home's value each year, more than in 72% of counties. Local government employs a smaller share of working residents than in 75% of counties. The homicide rate is lower than in 50% of counties. Life expectancy is about 76.8 years, longer than in 61% of counties. Air quality is better than in almost every other county (a typical day's air quality index is 13), and flood and hurricane risk is lower than in 77% of counties. On this site's state scores, South Dakota gets 8.18 of 10 for economic freedom, based on the Fraser Institute's ranking, and 10 of 10 for gun rights.

## Scores

| Factor | Level | Score (0–10) | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fraser Institute state ranking | state | 8.18 |  |
| 2A | state | 10.00 |  |
| Air quality | county | 8.67 |  |
| GOP + LP vote for President | county | 6.45 |  |
| Homicide rate | county | 8.60 |  |
| Sales tax | county | 6.18 |  |
| Property tax | county | 4.85 |  |
| Floods / hurricanes | county | 6.74 |  |
| Life expectancy | county | 6.80 |  |
| Government employees | county | 7.54 |  |
| Single-parent households | county | 8.19 |  |

"est" marks a derived or placeholder value with no published county figure.

## Neighbors

- #987 Lyman, South Dakota — https://libertymoving.org/counties/46085.md
- #54 Sully, South Dakota — https://libertymoving.org/counties/46119.md
- #88 Hyde, South Dakota — https://libertymoving.org/counties/46069.md
- #139 Stanley, South Dakota — https://libertymoving.org/counties/46117.md

## Links

- Page: https://libertymoving.org/counties/46065
- Compare: https://libertymoving.org/compare?a=46065
- Methodology: https://libertymoving.org/methodology
- Sources and terms: https://libertymoving.org/privacy