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Read. Follow. Verify.South Dakota Legislature modifies petition and signature requirements for local government and school district referendums
Last action · March 10, 2026: Failed to concur, no committee appointedSponsors: Aaron Aylward and 9 others
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What This Bill Proposed
House Bill 1323 standardizes the petition process for referring local ordinances, resolutions, and school district tax decisions to a public vote by establishing an alternative signature threshold of 2,500 registered voters or five percent of the total, whichever is fewer. The measure alters the calculation baseline for registered voters across counties, municipalities, and school districts and adjusts timelines and publication requirements for tax opt-outs.
Changes the legal threshold and procedures for residents seeking to challenge local government decisions, annexations, property tax increases, and school board policies through a public vote.
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Registered voters in South Dakota
Registered voters gain a clearer alternative signature threshold of 2,500 signatures or five percent of voters for filing referendum petitions against local government and school district decisions.
County commissioners and municipal governing bodies
Local governing bodies face standardized petition timelines and clearer statutory definitions separating legislative actions subject to referendum from administrative actions.
School districts
School districts must follow updated publication, notice formatting, and petition timelines when implementing excess tax levies or altering board terms.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many signatures are required to place a local ordinance referendum on the ballot?
What is the deadline for filing a referendum petition after a local decision is published?
Can administrative decisions made by local governing bodies be challenged by a referendum?
What types of local government actions are exempt from being referred to a vote?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · passed the House · in Senate committee.
Procedural history
13 actions- Mar 10, 2026HouseFloorFailed to concur, no committee appointed
- Mar 9, 2026SenateCommitteeDo Pass Amended
- Mar 9, 2026SenateMotion to amend
- Mar 4, 2026SenateCommitteeDo Pass Amended
- Mar 4, 2026SenateMotion to amend
- Mar 4, 2026SenateScheduled for hearing
Show 7 earlier actions
- Feb 23, 2026SenateIntroducedFirst read in Senate and referred to
- Feb 20, 2026HouseCommitteeDo Pass Amended
- Feb 20, 2026HouseMotion to amend
- Feb 18, 2026HouseCommitteeDo Pass
- Feb 18, 2026HouseScheduled for hearing
- Feb 6, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred to
- Feb 4, 2026HouseIntroducedFirst Reading House
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Voting Record
Failed to concur, no committee appointed
Total
70
- Yes
- 40
- No
- 27
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 0
- Abstain
- 0
- Other positions
- 3
How they voted (1)
Show 1 earlier roll call
Do Pass Amended
Total
70
- Yes
- 39
- No
- 28
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 0
- Abstain
- 0
- Other positions
- 3
How they voted (1)
Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Standardization of Petition Thresholds
The legislation introduces a uniform alternative cap of 2,500 signatures for referendum petitions across counties, municipalities, school districts, and special zoning areas.
Connected Entities
Sources
sdlegislature.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy45Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
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