---
type: "Bill"
title: "amend provisions pertaining to the processing of absentee ballots and to declare an emergency."
description: "amend provisions pertaining to the processing of absentee ballots and to declare an emergency."
jurisdiction: "us/states/sd"
legislature: "South Dakota Legislature"
session: "2026"
identifier: "SB 171"
citation: "South Dakota SB 171 (2026)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Absentee Voting", "Elections", "Emergency Clause"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Heinemann", "Peterson (Sue)"]
version_count: 4
action_count: 15
vote_count: 5
first_action: "2026-01-29"
last_action: "2026-03-30"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/37b1e594-fe38-4cbf-9a86-702e32c3b38b"
source_url: "https://sdlegislature.gov/Session/Bill/27030"
source_hash: "c161157bb794122ed4c77ff7e34850b0e4a39bcc7647e43f77a19615916dd284"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-sd"]
---

# South Dakota SB 171 (2026) — amend provisions pertaining to the processing of absentee ballots and to declare an emergency.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://sdlegislature.gov/Session/Bill/27030/299290)
2. **171A** (committee substitute) — [source](https://mylrc.sdlegislature.gov/api/Documents/302025.pdf)
3. **House State Affairs Engrossed** (committee substitute) — [source](https://sdlegislature.gov/Session/Bill/27030/305712)
4. **Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://sdlegislature.gov/Session/Bill/27030/306611)

## Votes

- Do Pass Amended — **56–11** (pass) · lower
- Concurred in amendments — **32–2** (pass) · upper
- Do Pass — **32–2** (pass) · upper
- Do Pass Amended — **11–0** (pass) · lower
- Do Pass — **9–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Heinemann — primary (person)
- Peterson (Sue) — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2026-01-29** First read in Senate and referred to Senate State Affairs S.J. 141 `introduction, reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2026-02-04** Scheduled for hearing
- **2026-02-04** State Affairs Do Pass , Passed, YEAS 9, NAYS 0 S.J. 15 `committee-passage`
- **2026-02-05** Senate Do Pass , Passed, YEAS 32, NAYS 2 S.J. 201 `passage`
- **2026-02-06** First Reading House H.J. 247
- **2026-02-09** Referred to House State Affairs H.J. 262 `referral-committee`
- **2026-03-02** Scheduled for hearing
- **2026-03-02** State Affairs Motion to amend , Passed, Amendment 171A `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage`
- **2026-03-02** State Affairs Do Pass Amended , Passed, YEAS 11, NAYS 0
- **2026-03-05** House of Representatives Do Pass Amended , Passed, YEAS 56, NAYS 11 H.J. 526
- **2026-03-10** Senate Concurred in amendments , Passed, YEAS 32, NAYS 2 S.J. 511
- **2026-03-11** Signed by the President S.J. 525 `passage`
- **2026-03-11** Signed by the Speaker H.J. 560 `passage`
- **2026-03-12** Delivered to the Governor on 2026-03-12 S.J. 539 `executive-receipt`
- **2026-03-30** Signed by the Governor on 2026-03-30 S.J. 550 `executive-signature, executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/37b1e594-fe38-4cbf-9a86-702e32c3b38b`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official South Dakota legislature records).