Newly minted South Dakota Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Ryan Budmayr presented his first 2026 legislative preview to the Mitchell Rotary Club.
He believes tax increment finance districts, property tax relief and data centers will get a lot of attention.
Starting with TIFs: “There’s some folks that want to change how we’re doing that in the state and question whether or not maybe that’s the best use of, or the best tool that we have, so to speak,” said Budmayr.
As for property tax relief: “Whether or not we increase sales tax or put caps on or what that looks like, but I think there are a handful, maybe half a dozen communities in the state that are really impacted over the last five years by the increase in property taxes,” Budmayr explained.
And Data Centers: “Even if some of these projects get built in North Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, we’re not immune to the impact that that would have on energy prices,” Budmayr said. “So basically, we’d miss out on maybe some of the advantages that those data centers would offer in taxes to these communities and revenue.”
Governor Larry Rhoden will deliver his budget address to lawmakers on December 2nd.
Budmayr succeeded longtime South Dakota Chamber of Commerce and Industry president and political observer David Owen.