Two bills that would help pave the way for the proposed three percent increase in funding for schools had hearings in Senate State Affairs on Wednesday.

 

Senate Bill 157, which provides an appropriation to the Building South Dakota fund, and Senate Bill 158, which revises certain funding provisions of the Building South Dakota fund, had action from the committee held to a later date.

 

ASBSD supports both bills.

 

SB 157 and 158 are key pieces of Gov. Daugaard’s plan to provide the three percent increase to schools as they would cover payments to the Building South Dakota fund, which was created by Senate Bill 235, for the next three years.

 

“We’re looking for a win-win,” S.D. Bureau of Finance and Management Commissioner Jason Dilges said. “(The bills) get us a significant way down the road.”

 

SB 157 proposes payments of $30 million spread over three years to help fund the Building South Dakota fund and SB 158 would repeal required ongoing future payments and the automatic payment mechanism to the fund and provides legal codification for SB 157. In addition, SB 158 would provide dollars to the Building S.D. fund if its total balance was below $15 million and if the state’s reserves were above 10 percent of the general fund budget.

 

After the three years of $10 million payments, Dilges said the discussion of how to stock the Building S.D. Fund would need to continue.

 

“We are going to need to keep this topic in mind,” Dilges said. “We’re probably going to be pretty well funded through fiscal (year) (20)18.”

 

Dilges noted that without the $30 million payment to the fund the state would not “have the luxury of going to three percent in the formula.”

 

ASBSD Executive Director Wade Pogany said the plan “helps schools tremendously.”

 

For updates on the bills, check the ASBSD Blog and Bill Tracker page.