Lawmakers maneuver for advantage in budget negotiations

Revenue forecasts could determine support for tax cuts

A group of South Dakota lawmakers settled on revenue numbers for next year’s budget in a game of chicken that could foreshadow where there’s support for tax cuts in the Legislature and where that support is soft.

The 10-member joint subcommittee included five members of the Senate and five from the House. House members favored estimates that showed the state taking higher amounts of tax revenue, while Senate members leaned toward more conservative estimates.

With the promise of a walleye dinner slipping away as the evening got later Tuesday, the two groups of lawmakers repeatedly broke into their respective camps before coming back to negotiate compromises.

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