The Chamber Advocate

A Preview of the 2026 South Dakota Legislative Session

The 2026 South Dakota legislative session kicks off Tuesday, Jan. 13. While it is impossible to predict all of the issues we will encounter in any given legislative session, as there are typically around 500 pieces of legislation introduced, there are a handful of topics we can expect to see this year.

Addressing growth across the state, and especially Sioux Falls, comes with both opportunities and challenges. Ensuring our community has right-sized, quality infrastructure is key to continuing to make Sioux Falls and South Dakota a great place to live. One way we can do this is by supporting the expansion efforts of the Sioux Falls Regional Airport.

The airport broke ground on a terminal expansion last fall, and shortly after, Gov. Larry Rhoden announced an initiative to support both Sioux Falls and Rapid City’s airport expansion plans. The governor proposed legislation that would give each airport the ability to receive up to $15 million in interest-free loans from the state, to be repaid over 20 years. This influx of funding would greatly assist the Sioux Falls airport expansion and allow our city to better accommodate the growing number of passengers traveling in and out of our region.

Owner-occupied property taxes continue to be an area of focus for the state Legislature. Last session, around two dozen proposals were introduced that aimed to lower the amount an owner-occupied dwelling would pay in property taxes to local entities. This session looks to follow that theme, with an interim legislative task force endorsing 19 recommendations to the full legislative body and likely more to come from individual legislators as the session goes on.

Proposals that have been recommended or introduced range from setting property tax mill levies at local levels of government to 0%, restricting spending for public education, expanding relief programs, restricting or repealing the use of tax increment financing districts and others. Other proposals that were floated but not adopted by the interim committee encompassed tax increases, removal of tax exemptions and cuts to state general fund expenditures.

Stagnant economic growth in South Dakota has also led Gov. Rhoden to recommend not increasing budgets for Medicaid providers, state employees and public education. A tight budget year will likely take up much of the oxygen throughout the session as the administration and lawmakers look for ways to support essential services in South Dakota.

While these are only a few themes we predict seeing during the legislative session, we anticipate seeing legislation related to public safety, recidivism, community support services, data centers, energy, health care and more.

You can follow along during the South Dakota legislative session by continuing to read Chamber Advocate each week and see which bills the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber team is engaging with through our Bill Tracker.

If there is an issue you would like to learn more about or discuss with the Chamber’s policy team, please contact us.

Mitch Rave, Vice President of Public Policy mrave@siouxfalls.com

Aaron Vlasman, Public Policy Manager avlasman@siouxfalls.com