South Dakota lawmakers strike deal, pass $5.8 billion budget

March 11, 2022

PIERRE, S.D.–The South Dakota Legislature has come to an agreement about federal spending against the wishes of the Governor. The proposed measure simultaneously gives and takes away power from the executive branch.

House Bill 1281 says federal funds that come to the state for new uses would require a special committee of lawmakers to sign off on the executive branch’s plan. That would need to be done before the money can be allocated. Recurring or continuing projects are not subject to this new rule.

Governor Kristi Noem is firmly against what the bill saying, “we had worked on an amendment to this bill that would have been acceptable and workable, the leadership of the House and the appropriations, and the House have rejected that. Therefore, this bill is bad government and it’s going to slow it down from people who utilize some federal funds to help individuals in our state.”

The conference committee included a sunset in the bill, which removes it from effect next year. This would give the Legislature the opportunity to assess if the bill worked as intended.

Lawmakers from both chambers will have the opportunity to override a potential veto on March 28th.