Bob Mercer cooks up the strange thesis that “shifting some of the property-tax burden off single-family residential dwellings” was part of an overarching effort by the 2026 Legislature to “make South Dakota a safer place“.
Sure, safer if you have an expensive house. But not if you’re a low-income South Dakotan—GOP Senate Leader Jim Mehlhaff (R-24/Pierre) admits he’s picking your pocket to give rich homeowners their tax break:
There’s no doubt that raising sales taxes in order to lower property taxes will shift more of South Dakota’s tax burden to lower-income residents, Republican Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff said.
“It is regressive,” he said. “There’s no denying that” [Kevin Hardy, “Republican Push to Increase Sales Tax Would Fall Hardest on Lower-Income Residents,” Stateline, 2026.03.18].
Senator Mehlhaff has two primary challengers. Perhaps Brian Murphy or Mark Nelson will ask Mehlhaff and District 24 voters how raising taxes on the poor makes South Dakota safer.