State dipping into rainy day fund to balance the budget

S.D. State Capitol in Pierre. Adobe Stock photo via GDNS.

PIERRE, SD (KELO.com) — Nearly 100-million dollars in reserve funds are needed to balance the budget that’s taking shape in Pierre.  That still leaves over 300-million dollars in the ‘rainy day fund’.  Economic growth and tax revenues are coming back down to earth after several years of high inflation.  State Finance and Management Commissioner Jim Terwilliger says South Dakota’s Federal Medical Assistance Percentage for Medicaid Funding – now above 49-percent.  The maximum share of the Medicaid Funds the state will have to pay is 50-percent, so future increases won’t be as large.  Medicaid now makes up about a third of state spending, while school funding is easing because of lower student enrollment.