The Chamber Advocate – Week Eight
2026 South Dakota Legislative Session – Week Eight
Week 8 marked the penultimate week of the 2026 legislative session. It was a week packed with final bill hearings in committee and significant action on the floor of both legislative chambers. A number of priority bills supported by the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce received final action this week.
SB 76, a bill that would loan up to $15 million each to the Rapid City and Sioux Falls airports, passed its final hurdle in the House on Thursday and now moves to Governor Rhoden’s desk. This bill was months in the making and provides critical funding support for expansion efforts at the state’s two largest airports.
SB 79, an act to appropriate $6 million to support the construction of the James Abnor Center for Advanced Manufacturing at Southeast Technical College, passed the House on Wednesday. This appropriation will expand classroom space, and therefore class sizes, to accommodate the rapidly growing interest of students who want to pursue careers in advanced manufacturing. This bill also moves to the Governor’s desk for final approval.
HB 1245, a bill that would allow voters in a municipality to approve a specific list of capital projects in their communities by implementing a temporary 1% sales tax increase for a number of years, also passed the Senate on Thursday and moves to Governor Rhoden’s desk. If a community decides to utilize this program with more than 60% voter approval, it will allow municipalities to forego bonding and avoid taking on debt to pay for critical capital projects. This can ultimately save taxpayer dollars by allowing communities to save and spend, rather than taking on unnecessary long-term debt.
There were a number of other bills that the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce supported that made it to the Governor’s desk this week as well. These bills include HB 1244, SB 36, and SB 228 to name a few.
Movement on Owner-Occupied Property Taxes
Governor Rhoden’s property tax initiative, SB 96, also passed the House on Thursday following a robust and lengthy debate. This initiative would allow county voters to raise sales taxes up to 0.5% in an effort to lower the burden on owner-occupied property taxes. Passage of this bill sets the stage for Monday, when both legislative chambers will debate a number of other bills related to property taxes. The Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce did not advocate on SB 96.
The Final Act
Monday will start the final week of the 2026 legislative session. As stated above, we anticipate Monday will be largely occupied by discussions on owner-occupied property taxes. However, with Governor Rhoden’s plan now across the finish line, it is unclear how much appetite the Legislature will have to continue adjusting the property tax system. The remaining days of the week may be filled with conference committees between the two chambers on bills that were amended during the process. Lawmakers will also finalize the state budget for the next fiscal year.
Stay Informed
As we wrap up the final stretch of the 2026 Legislative Session, please continue to read Chamber Advocate and check out our Bill Tracker to see how legislation your Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce team advocated on this year fared during the process. Please reach out if you have questions about any legislation that has seen final action or is yet to be debated.