Minnehaha County Wheel Tax Hearing June 17

On Tuesday, May 20th, the Minnehaha County Commissioners voted unanimously to schedule a public hearing to discuss increasing the wheel tax for certain vehicles during license tab registration and renewal. This tax supports maintenance and enhancements for county roads and bridges, as the County Highway Department operates without funding from property taxes. If adopted, the proposed plan would begin on January 1, 2026. It would raise the wheel tax from $4 to $5 per wheel, with a cap of $60, for vehicles over 6,000 pounds. For all other vehicles, the tax would stay at $4 per wheel, with a $16 maximum. The average four-wheel passenger vehicle would be unaffected.

The hearing is slated for June 17.

Currently, I am in support of this proposal for several key reasons: 1) Larger vehicles, which cause much greater road wear than standard passenger vehicles, would more equitably contribute to funding infrastructure maintenance; 2) rising infrastructure maintenance costs have outpaced tax revenue, unchanged for 30 years, necessitating an adjustment; 3) the proposed fee increase for larger vehicles would strengthen Minnehaha County’s applications for state/federal bridge repair and replacement grants by boosting our score in competitive funding evaluations.

Please feel free to contact me with any feedback or questions.

Related Sources & Info: Proposed Amendments from Minnehaha County Commission Meeting, May 20th, 2025: https://minnehahacosd.portal.civicclerk.com/event/602/files/report/2802 Sioux Falls Live article from April 22, 2025 :https://www.siouxfallslive.com/news/sioux-falls/minnehaha-county-may-consider-wheel-tax-increase-for-first-time-in-30-years

Garretson Gazette article from May 8, 2025: https://www.garretsongazette.com/latest-briefing-on-wheel-tax-paves-way-for-increase-before-2026/

Dakota Scout article from May 21, 2025: https://www.thedakotascout.com/p/tax-hike-advancing-in-minnehaha-county?r=s9w5n