The South Dakota Legislature concluded its third week of session Thursday. Below are some of the notable bills currently being considered.
SENATE BILLS
•SB 67 expunges the criminal record of sex trafficking victims under the age of 18. Minors who are found to have been a part of a trafficking ring may apply to the court for expungement provided they did not engage in other criminal activities. SB 67 passed both Senate Judiciary and the Senate floor unanimously.
SB 56 changes the eligibility and requirements for disabled and elderly individuals to receive refunds for sales tax and property tax. This bill contains an emergency clause and it passed Senate Appropriations and the Senate floor without opposition.
•SB 11 changes the time frame in which a ballot committee may submit their proposal to LRC. This bill passed Senate State affairs with one no vote and passed the Senate Floor 30-3
•SB 10 provides a solution in the event there are two ballot measures in conflict with one another in the same election year. While a Constitutional Amendment would still supersede a change in statute, if two laws conflict the one with the most votes would be the winner. This bill passed both Senate State Affairs and the Senate floor without opposition.
•SB 9 would require a fiscal note, compiled by LRC, to accompany both initiated measures and constitutional amendments to determine the cost or lack thereof to the state upon passage. This bill passed Senate State Affairs 7-2 and Passed the Senate Floor 29-6
•SB 79 would allow independents to sign nominating petitions for candidates. Current law only allows members of the candidate’s party to sign nominating petitions. This bill passed State Affairs with no opposing votes and it passed the Senate Floor 24-10.
HOUSE BILLS
•HB 1058 removes the requirement for the superintendent of the South Dakota School for the Deaf to be proficient in sign language. The reason for this change is that the School for the Visually Impaired and the School for the Deaf have now been combined. This bill passed House State Affairs unanimously and passed the House Floor with two no votes.
•HB 1103 requires State agencies to properly display the Great Seal of South Dakota. This bill contains provisions to protect satirical renderings to remain consistent with the First Amendment. This bill passed House State Affairs with no opposition.
•HB 1032 Exempts credit unions from the requirement to licensed real estate brokers. This bill passed House Commerce and Energy with no opposition and passed the House Floor 46-19.
•HB 1081 removes the sunset clause for the non-meandered waters laws. This bill passed the House Floor 51-12.
•HB 1100 requires a printed name to go along with a signature on all public contracts. The reason for this change is a public contract involving an illegible signature. This bill passed State Affairs unanimously and passed the House Floor with only one no vote.
•HJR 1001 would change the current law regarding legislator pay and amend the Constitution to make it one fifth of median South Dakota pay. This was vigorously debated on Thursday, January 25th. I voted No on the bill but it still passed the House Floor 38-26.
If you have any questions and/or comments on these bills or any other legislation, please email me at tom.pischke@sdlegislature.gov