South Dakota lawmakers say they still want property tax relief this session, but House leaders left Thursday’s (Feb. 26, 2026) news conferences with fewer options on the table after a bipartisan tax plan failed in the House.
House Democrats said House Bill 1308B was the clearest path to broad relief. They blamed House Republicans for letting it die.
“House Republicans had a clear opportunity to pass a tax bill this week, House Bill 1308B,” said Rep. Erik Muckey, D-Sioux Falls. “This was a bipartisan effort to bring forward tax relief to 100 percent of South Dakotans.”
House Republican leaders did not spend much time relitigating the bill. They pointed to the basic math behind any major tax cut and said the Legislature is running short on time.
“Bottom line is you’ve got to have the votes,” said House Majority Leader Scott Odenbach, R-Spearfish.
The failure of HB 1308B leaves lawmakers trying to assemble property tax relief from smaller bills and late-session negotiations, with both parties warning that meaningful cuts come with a price tag and limited time left to strike a deal.
Muckey explained the bill’s goal: reduce grocery and owner-occupied property taxes, not disproportionately tax anyone.
Odenbach said property tax cuts always force a choice. Either the state backfills lost dollars, or local governments live with less money.
“The ways to cut property taxes really either means you are going to cut spending … or you find different sources of revenue to offset it,” Odenbach said.
Democrats framed the vote as a missed chance for broad relief. They credited Rep. Tim Czymoski, R-Harrisburg, for working on the bill, and argued it showed bipartisan agreement was possible until House Republicans split.
Republican leaders said talks continue, but they also described the same constraint everyone hits: the price tag and the vote count.
Lawmakers have only a handful of working days left in the main run of the session before they return for veto day.
By Todd Epp | South Dakota Broadcasters Association.
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