Government & Elections

Creates a fund to reduce homeowner property taxes.

This bill adds a general statement that 'The Legislature shall promote the future success and development of South Dakota' to state law. It appears to be purely aspirational language with no substantive legal changes, requirements, or mandates.

Changes how mail-in ballots are processed.

This bill modifies South Dakota's absentee ballot processing procedures. Key changes include: allowing the person in charge of elections (rather than just counties) to create absentee ballot precincts; permitting absentee ballot counting boards to begin processing ballots the day before election day and on election day prior to poll closing; allowing automatic tabulation of absentee ballots before polls close (but prohibiting display of vote totals); requiring pollbooks for absentee ballot precincts; and updating various procedural requirements for ballot handling, validation, and counting.

Changes the rules for putting local government decisions to a public vote.

This bill extends the time period for filing referendum petitions against local government ordinances and resolutions from 20 days to 45 days. It applies to county, municipal, and school district ordinances/resolutions. The bill also standardizes the signature requirement at 5% of registered voters and updates publication timing requirements to align with the new 45-day referendum period.

Creates a general framework to address state issues.

This bill adds the statement 'The Legislature shall address issues facing South Dakota' to state law while removing all other substantive content from what appears to have been a previous bill.

Establishes programs to support South Dakota's growth and development.

This bill adds a general aspirational statement that 'The Legislature shall promote the future success and development of South Dakota' to state law. It contains no substantive legal requirements, regulatory changes, or enforcement mechanisms - just a broad policy declaration.

Changes how voter registration lists are made public.

This bill changes how South Dakota publishes voter registration files. Instead of weekly updates, the secretary of state must post the complete statewide voter registration file weekly by 11:59 PM central time each Monday. It also requires maintaining and publishing a rolling five-year historical archive of the complete voter registration file, updated weekly. The bill clarifies that restrictions on commercial use and internet posting of voter data do not apply to these official publications by the secretary of state.

Changes rules for submitting candidate petitions.

This bill modifies filing deadlines and procedures for nominating petitions across multiple election contexts. It changes municipal candidate filing deadlines from 70 days before election to specific dates (second Tuesday of March for June elections, second Tuesday of August for November elections), extends registered mail receipt deadlines to March 31st and August 31st respectively, modifies candidate withdrawal procedures, updates primary election petition filing deadlines from last Tuesday of March to second Tuesday of March, and adjusts school board candidate petition filing requirements.

Updates rules about public access to government records.

This bill makes minor technical updates to South Dakota's open records law, including grammatical changes (replacing 'which' with 'that'), punctuation corrections, reorganizing text structure for clarity, and updating federal statute citations with effective dates. The substantive exemptions from open records disclosure remain unchanged - the bill only improves readability and organization of existing exemptions.

Requires interpreters for people who need them in state agency hearings.

This bill requires state agencies to provide interpreter or translator services for parties who need language assistance in administrative contested case proceedings. The agency conducting the proceeding must procure and pay for these services from their operating budget. Additionally, the prevailing party in such proceedings can recover their own interpreter/translator costs that weren't covered by the agency.

Changes rules about what government records can be made public.

This bill modifies public access to voter registration records by expanding privacy protections for certain officials. It adds new protections for personally identifiable information (home addresses, phone numbers, and personal email addresses) for elected/appointed statewide, legislative, and federal officials, current and retired judges, and law enforcement officers. The bill restructures existing privacy protections that previously only applied to judicial officers' home addresses and extends these protections to both current county records and the statewide historical archive maintained by the Secretary of State. It also includes a provision stating that violations do not create a private right of action.

Gives legislators more control over state agency rule-making.

This bill adds new legislative oversight requirements for agency rulemaking by: (1) creating a new definition of 'major rule' (rules with over $1 million in compliance costs over 5 years), (2) requiring agencies to prepare regulatory impact analyses for all proposed permanent rules that detail whether the rule is a major rule, (3) requiring code counsel to advise agencies whether proposed rules are major rules, and (4) requiring regulatory impact analyses to be provided to legislative committees and published on state websites as part of the rulemaking process.

Addresses various issues facing South Dakota.

This bill creates a non-substantive statement that 'The Legislature shall address issues facing South Dakota.' It appears to be either a placeholder bill or potentially defective legislation with no actual legal effect or requirements.

Changes how casino revenue is distributed.

This bill modifies the distribution formula for gaming revenues from the Gaming Commission fund. It changes the percentage allocation to the state general fund (decreasing from 70% to 20% over time from 2026-2029) and to the City of Deadwood's historic restoration fund (increasing from 10% to 60% over the same period). The percentages for municipalities and school districts in Lawrence County remain unchanged at 10% each.

proposing and submitting to the voters at the next general election, amendments to the Constitution of the State of South Dakota, removing the lieutenant governor as presiding officer of the Senate.

Requires state agencies to check with aviation officials before buying or selling state aircraft.

This bill requires state agencies to consult with the Aeronautics Commission when purchasing, transferring, or disposing of state-owned and operated aircraft, including unmanned aircraft systems. The commission must provide advice and expertise in the form of a written report to the Governor and the requesting agency.

Limits courts from deferring to state agencies' interpretations of laws.

This bill eliminates judicial deference to state agency interpretations of statutes, rules, and policies. Courts and hearing officers must interpret agency rules de novo (from scratch) rather than deferring to the agency's interpretation. When doubt remains after applying all interpretation tools, courts must favor interpretations that protect individual constitutional rights over agency positions.

Aims to boost South Dakota's economy.

This bill creates a non-binding legislative declaration that 'The Legislature shall enhance the economy of South Dakota.' It contains no substantive legal changes, requirements, or enforcement mechanisms - only a statement of legislative intent.

Extends deadline for Cultural Heritage Center renovation funds.

This bill extends the reversion date for unused appropriated funds from June 30, 2026 to June 30, 2028 for moneys allocated to the Department of Education to improve and renovate the Cultural Heritage Center. The bill is effective beginning June 29, 2026.

Requires proof of citizenship to register to vote.

This bill requires individuals to provide proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote using documentation such as driver's licenses issued after July 1, 2025 (that verify citizenship), tribal ID cards, birth certificates, U.S. passports, or certificates of naturalization. Individuals who cannot provide citizenship documentation are designated as 'federal voters' and can only vote in federal elections (president, U.S. senator, U.S. representative). Current registered voters are grandfathered in until July 1, 2026, but must provide citizenship proof if they move to a different county within the state.

Clarifies what happens when governor's appointees resign.

This bill modifies procedures for gubernatorial appointments to boards and commissions that require Senate consent. It clarifies that when positions become vacant due to resignation, the resigning person must continue serving until the earlier of: (1) the Governor appointing another person with Senate consent, (2) the Governor making an interim appointment that the Senate acts upon, or (3) a date set in writing by the resigning person. It also changes language requiring the Senate to act on interim appointments and establishes procedures for expired terms and deemed renominations.

Updates rules for how city governments operate.

This bill revises municipal government procedures including: clarifying the process for filling mayoral vacancies through aldermen appointment; establishing succession rules for mayor pro tempore positions; updating eligibility requirements for municipal officers to require 3-month residency and qualified voter status; revising appointment procedures for municipal officers; updating oath and bonding requirements for appointed officers; and clarifying when vacancies occur and removal procedures for municipal officers.

urging collaboration to reduce hunger and food waste in this state under the protections of the 1996 Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act.

Strengthens legislative oversight and conflict of interest rules.

This bill expands legislative oversight powers by giving House and Senate Judiciary Committees the same subpoena and discovery authority as the Government Operations and Audit Committee. It creates whistleblower protections for state employees who cooperate with legislative investigations, allowing civil lawsuits with damages including treble damages for knowing and intentional retaliation. The bill strengthens conflict of interest laws by expanding post-employment restrictions for state officials to include contracts over $100,000 they influenced, making violations a felony instead of misdemeanor, and creating new 'indirect criminal conflict of interest' for officials who act to secure future employment benefits.

Changes when cities can hold their elections.

This bill makes technical amendments to municipal election procedures by changing terminology from 'annual municipal elections' to 'regular municipal elections' throughout various statutes. It also makes minor procedural changes to election timing requirements, allows boards of trustees to extend terms from 3 to 4 years for even-year elections, and updates language for filling municipal office vacancies including mayors and aldermen.

Updates public records access rules.

This bill makes technical updates to South Dakota's open records law exemptions by standardizing language and updating federal law citations. The changes include: replacing 'which' with 'that' throughout, changing sentence structures for clarity (adding 'provided this' language), reorganizing Gaming Commission language, adding a new exemption for correspondence/records not maintained on publicly-owned systems, and updating federal law citations with specific USC references and effective dates.

Clarifies how to properly fill out a ballot.

This bill changes the requirement for marking optical scan ballots from allowing voters to use a pencil or other marking instrument to requiring voters to use specifically a black ink ballpoint pen.

Requires publishing election results for local party committee positions.

This bill requires county auditors to forward information about precinct committeeman and committeewoman candidates and election results to the secretary of state, who must then post this information on their website. The information includes candidate names upon filing, election results from primary elections, and names of those automatically elected without opposition.

Changes ballot requirements for certain elections.

This bill consolidates ballot requirements for primary elections by eliminating separate ballots for precinct committee positions and judicial candidates, instead requiring all candidates to be placed on the official primary election ballot. It removes requirements for separate 'nonpolitical judiciary ballots' and separate ballots for precinct committeeman/committeewoman positions, streamlining the ballot process under State Board of Elections oversight.

Changes rules for filing campaign finance reports.

This bill amends South Dakota campaign finance disclosure requirements by reorganizing the format of required filing statements for various political committees. It changes the language from 'file a campaign finance disclosure statement or a report' to 'file the following campaign finance disclosure statements' and restructures the list of required filings (pre-primary, pre-general, year-end, supplemental reports, and amendments) into a more organized lettered format. The bill also changes references from 'report' to 'statement' throughout and makes the changes effective January 1, 2027.

Changes how long election materials must be kept before they can be destroyed.

This bill extends the ballot retention period for municipal, nonfederal state, and school district elections from 60 days to 22 months before election officials may destroy voted ballots, pollbooks, and other election materials. The bill standardizes the retention period across all election types to match the existing 22-month federal election requirement.

Expands who can use the state's cybersecurity protection services.

This bill expands South Dakota's cybersecurity services initiative by changing the eligible entities from just counties and municipalities to also include nonprofit utilities and utilities operated by political subdivisions. The bill maintains the $7 million appropriation to the Attorney General's office but broadens the scope of who can receive cybersecurity infrastructure and technology protection services.

Requires state agencies to use specific geographic names in official documents.

This bill requires South Dakota state agencies to use only the terms 'Judea and Samaria,' 'Judea,' or 'Samaria' when referring to land adjacent to Jordan that was obtained by Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War, and prohibits the use of the term 'West Bank' in official government materials. The requirement applies to administrative rules, briefings, communications, guidance materials, press releases, and work product documents, but excludes teaching or research materials used by postsecondary instructors.

Changes how many signatures are needed on election petitions.

This bill modifies definitions in South Dakota's election laws, updating terminology around candidates, ballot question committees, petition circulators, and various election-related terms. It changes language from 'person' to 'individual' throughout, updates definitions of political parties, independents, and various election procedures. The bill appears to be part of broader election law modernization and clarification.

Requires all legislator votes to be posted on the state website.

This bill requires the Legislative Research Council to create and maintain webpages for each legislator showing their complete voting record on all bills and resolutions in their chamber and committees, including recording absences or excusals. The voting records must be prominently displayed and easily accessible to the public as a tab on each legislator's profile page, effective for sessions after July 1, 2026.

Allows using confirmation letters to verify voter registration.

This bill modifies voter registration confirmation procedures by allowing county auditors to use either confirmation letters or postcards (instead of just postcards) to verify voter registration information. It updates the procedures for when acknowledgement notices or address verification requests are returned as undeliverable, restructures the instructions provided to voters, and changes language from 'shall' to 'must' throughout. The bill becomes effective December 1, 2026.

Changes the reasons someone can challenge another person's right to vote.

This bill amends the grounds for challenging a voter's eligibility to vote. It adds United States citizenship as a third basis for challenging voter eligibility (in addition to the existing grounds of voting/registering in another state and state residency). The bill also makes minor grammatical changes to clarify that applications can 'only challenge' rather than 'challenge only' these specific voter qualifications.

Eliminates the Digital Dakota Network and its funding.

This bill repeals several sections of law that created and governed the Digital Dakota Network, an Office of Digital Dakota Network within the Bureau of Information and Telecommunications. The bill removes the statutory framework for this telecommunications network while transferring some administrative functions to the Bureau of Information and Telecommunications, including rule-making authority for network management and telecommunications services.

Bans state employees from working for companies they gave contracts to.

This bill creates new restrictions on state employees and officers who handle government contracts. It prohibits them from being employed by organizations that received contracts they approved, awarded, or administered - for one year if the contract was under $1 million, or two years if over $1 million. It also updates existing conflict of interest rules with clearer language and procedures for exceptions.

Allows on-demand ballot printing systems for elections.

This bill authorizes county auditors and political subdivision governing bodies to use ballot on demand systems for elections. A ballot on demand system is defined as a mechanism that prints official ballots on an as-needed basis using blank ballot paper. The bill requires political subdivisions to use the county's ballot on demand system if both jurisdictions agree to conduct elections using the same ballot for shared offices and contests.

Changes ballot counting rules and allows release of voting records and ballot images.

This bill amends South Dakota's automatic tabulating equipment laws for elections. It adds definitions for 'ballot image' (digital facsimile of paper ballot) and 'cast vote record' (electronic record of how marks were tabulated). It establishes new rules for resolution board appointments based on political party representation and vote thresholds. Most significantly, it allows governing bodies to authorize release of cast vote records and ballot images after election canvassing, with specific privacy protections including requirements to redact personal information, exclude timing data, combine small precincts to ensure anonymity, and maintain collections of at least 100 ballots.

Requires public access to ballot images and voting machine records.

This bill makes cast vote records and ballot images from automatic tabulating equipment public records under South Dakota's open records law. It establishes privacy protections by prohibiting release of records that could identify voters, contain timing/order information, or come from small precincts (under 100 ballots) unless properly redacted and combined with other precincts. The jurisdiction conducting the election bears all costs for producing, storing, and releasing these records.

urging the people of the state of South Dakota to seek the Lord Most High for His healing presence and mercy upon South Dakota.

honoring the life and achievements of the late Charlie Kirk.

Changes the duties of Electoral College members from South Dakota.

This bill modernizes South Dakota's presidential elector procedures by: (1) updating notification timing and language requirements for electors; (2) creating detailed vacancy filling procedures when electors fail to appear; (3) requiring electors to pledge to vote for the candidates who won the state's popular vote; (4) establishing that an elector's office becomes vacant if they attempt to vote for different candidates than those who won the state (faithless elector prevention); (5) providing exceptions if a winning candidate dies or becomes disabled between election and Electoral College meeting; and (6) reorganizing the statutory chapter structure.

Bans electronic voting machines and ballot marking devices.

This bill prohibits the use of automatic tabulating equipment and electronic ballot marking systems in South Dakota elections. It requires all vote counting to be done by hand and makes various conforming changes to election statutes by removing references to electronic voting equipment and requiring manual ballot counting processes.

Updates rules for running city and school elections.

This bill makes technical amendments to municipal and school district election procedures. It clarifies terminology (adding definitions for 'in conjunction with' and 'combined with'), changes voter qualification language from 'person' to 'individual', modifies residency requirements and challenge procedures for different types of combined elections, adjusts publication timing requirements for election notices, and establishes specific absentee ballot availability timelines including a 46-day requirement when municipal elections are combined with county elections using the same ballot.

Bans political candidates from accepting money from foreign nationals.

This bill amends campaign finance law to prohibit candidates and political committees from accepting contributions or loans from foreign nationals (as defined in federal law). It increases penalties from a Class 2 misdemeanor to a Class 1 misdemeanor for first violations, and from Class 1 misdemeanor to Class 6 felony for subsequent offenses within a calendar year. The bill includes an emergency clause for immediate implementation.

Updates rules for when government meetings can be closed to the public.

This bill revises South Dakota's open meetings law (SDCL 1-25-2) to strengthen requirements for executive sessions and closed meetings. Key changes include: requiring unanimous votes OR roll call votes to enter executive session, mandating that motions specify the applicable legal authority for closing the meeting, requiring documentation in meeting minutes, and reorganizing/clarifying the existing permitted reasons for closed meetings (personnel matters, student issues, legal counsel, contract negotiations, business strategies, and security matters). The bill does not change what topics can be discussed in closed session, but adds procedural safeguards to ensure proper use of executive sessions.

Requires more detailed public meeting agendas with penalties for violations.

This bill adds new requirements for open meeting agendas by public bodies. It mandates that proposed agendas must list all items to be considered and describe agenda items in sufficient detail to reasonably inform the public of official business or public policy to be considered. Violations of these requirements constitute a Class 2 misdemeanor.

Requires posting meeting agendas online three days in advance.

This bill amends open meeting requirements for state government boards, commissions, and departments by clarifying the 72-hour advance posting requirement for meeting agendas. The bill restructures the existing law to specify that agendas must be posted online at least 72 hours before meetings (excluding weekends and holidays), be visible and accessible to the public, and be posted on a designated state website. It also clarifies notification requirements for special or rescheduled meetings to local news media.

Clarifies when agencies must disclose financial impacts of new rules.

This bill modifies the administrative rulemaking process by requiring agencies to provide financial resource information to code counsel (in addition to the Interim Rules Review Committee) when proposing rules that increase fees. The financial information includes fund balances, receipts, and disbursements for the last two fiscal years plus projections for current and next fiscal year. This information must now be filed earlier in the rulemaking process - at least 20 days before public hearings rather than just before committee review.

Requires state agencies to post new rules online for public access.

This bill requires state agencies to publish proposed permanent rules and related documents (fiscal notes, impact statements, hearing notices) on a single state website designated by the Governor rather than on individual agency websites. It also requires agencies to publish additional rulemaking documents including code counsel's recommendations, hearing minutes, and final corrected rules on this centralized website.

Requires ballot measures to say whether they came from citizens or lawmakers.

This bill requires ballot questions to disclose whether they were proposed by the Legislature or by citizen initiative. It adds disclosure language to attorney general statements that appear on ballots, specifying whether constitutional amendments or referred laws came from the Legislature versus citizen-initiated petitions.