Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk said Tuesday that he and House Speaker Kurt Daudt will push for $2.8 million in additional tax relief sought by Super Bowl organizers for the 2018 game in Minneapolis.

But Gov. Mark Dayton is not on board with the state’s top two legislative leaders.

He said in a statement that he hadn’t been informed of the request and that “unless that happens, there is nothing else to consider.”

Minnesota already exempts sales tax on tickets to the game itself, a law dating from the 1992 Super Bowl in Minneapolis. That’s worth about $9.5 million in forgone revenue, state officials have said.

The new request would extend that exemption to cover events related to the game at the new Vikings stadium, such as an interactive zone for fans or certain tailgating events.

Super Bowl organizers have said that they believed they had assurances from state leaders that the related events would be exempted, but Dayton reiterated Tuesday that “while additional public incentives were discussed prior to Minnesota’s Super Bowl bid submission, no further commitments were approved by legislative leaders or myself.”

Dayton and legislative leaders provided a letter of general support in the bid package that ultimately was approved by NFL owners in May 2014, but it contained no promises.

The governor added that he has not been approached since then by the host committee or the NFL with any additional requests for public subsidies.

“If either of them, or any other party, desired any additional state benefits, it would be necessary for them to make such a request publicly to the four caucus leaders and myself.”

Bakk, a DFLer from Cook, and Daudt, a Republican from Crown, said they had been briefed on the request by Super Bowl organizers.

Bakk said he found out about the $2.8 million request a month ago.

“The speaker and I have talked about it, and we’re going to try and find a way to accommodate that in the tax bill,” said Bakk.

Daudt said he has no objection to the extra tax exemption “if we can find a way to pay for it.”

“I wish that they didn’t ask for all of these sorts of tax breaks, but it is an economic benefit to the community. It’s kind of a ‘but for’ — it doesn’t happen if we don’t have the Super Bowl here,” Daudt said.

Giving more tax breaks to the NFL and its wealthy patrons isn’t a winning political strategy on its face, but Bakk said he feels obliged to act because of the general commitment he, other legislative leaders and Dayton made in the bid package.

“They’re not asking for something that Indianapolis or New Orleans or somewhere else hasn’t done,” Bakk said.

The game is not part of the 2016-17 biennium for which lawmakers are currently building a budget, but Bakk said there’s no point in waiting. Stadium officials have said they want the legislation passed this year as well.

Bakk and Daudt said they didn’t know which lawmaker would be carrying the bill in each chamber.

State leaders made it clear their largesse wouldn’t extend to waiving player income taxes for the time they’re in Minnesota. Those costs will be covered by private fund-raising, officials with the host committee said.

The Department of Revenue and stadium officials have estimated player income tax revenue at $1 million-$3 million, but committee officials said those numbers are high.

Organizers say an additional $3 million in tax breaks is a small number, particularly when Meet Minneapolis has calculated that state and local governments will collect $32.4 million in tax revenue from Super Bowl visitors on items such as food, shopping, rental cars, hotels and entertainment.

Most of the Super Bowl expenses, they point out, will be funded through $30 million-$40 million in private donations.

The two leaders of the minority caucuses, Rep. Paul Thissen, DFL-Minneapolis, and Sen. David Hann, R-Eden Prairie, said they had not been informed of the host committee’s request.

Thissen said Tuesday that he would have to study the details to see if he could support the proposal.

“I’ll have to look at it, but I’m not thrilled with any additional tax breaks more than we’ve already supplied for the Super Bowl,” he said.

Hann said he would be open to the request if it were part of a broader plan Republicans have been considering: a sales tax holiday for everyone in Minnesota during the Super Bowl and related events.

“Let’s all celebrate, even if we can’t go to the game,” Hann said.

He said there’s been no calculation of what that idea would cost.

Rep. Greg Davids, R-Preston, chairman of the House Taxes committee, also hadn’t heard of the host committee’s tax relief request and said organizers need to act fast if they hope to get the exemption adopted this session.

“We better start having some hearings. I’d sure like to hear about it,” Davids said.

Doug Belden can be reached at 651-228-5136.

Follow him at twitter.com/dbeldenpipress.