PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — A legislative administrator says it cost roughly $35,000 to hold this week’s special session on sales taxes for online purchases.
Legislative Research Council Director Jason Hancock said Friday that legislator pay and per diem made up over $31,000 of that price tag.
Lawmakers gathered Wednesday for the session, approving three bills, including Gov. Dennis Daugaard’s measure allowing South Dakota to collect sales taxes from many out-of-state online retailers starting Nov. 1.
The session followed a Supreme Court ruling in South Dakota’s favor allowing states to force online shoppers to pay sales tax. Daugaard’s chief of staff, Tony Venhuizen, says the benefits of implementing the ruling this fall outweigh the session’s cost.
Hancock says he doesn’t expect his agency will need to request extra funding to cover the cost. The previous special session, held in 2017, cost about $37,500.