First of its kind video explaining South Dakota's abortion trigger law passes Senate 31-3
PIERRE — A bill to create a public video explaining South Dakota’s abortion trigger law passed the Senate 31-3 on Thursday. The bill now heads to the Governor’s Desk.
HB 1224 tasks the Department of Health, in partnership with the Attorney General’s Office and medical experts, to create a video to further clarify what doctors can do to save the life of a mother when she’s experiencing a dangerous pregnancy and how that fits into the state’s trigger law.
The video, which will be funded through the Department of Social Services to the estimated tune of $50,000, will also lay out the most common medical conditions that threaten the life of the mother, medical standards of treatment and criteria that the medical provider might use.
More: House committee approves of video explaining SD's abortion laws
Sen. Erin Tobin, R-Winner, who sponsored the bill on the Senate side explained the bill was a way to enhance the public’s understanding about the trigger law and battle misinformation.
“We as legislators representing mothers, babies and families can make sure our trigger law is understood by all and allow comfort and reassurance as we grow our families and our communities,” she said.
Since the fall of Roe v. Wade in 2022, the legislation is the first of its kind in the nation. Other states have issued executive or administrative orders to create a public video explaining their state’s abortion laws.
During committee testimony Wednesday, proponents from the DOH, Right to Life and the Governor’s Office said the video would provide peace of mind for mothers, families and medical providers.
The only opponent Wednesday, the ACLU of South Dakota, expressed worries that HB1224 was too vague in language and might not cover every aspect of pregnancy.
“It does not solve the fundamental problem we’re facing here, which is that our underlying statutes are too vague to reasonably inform a medical practitioner as to what they’re legally allowed to do in an emergency,” Samantha Chapman said.
On the Senate floor, Sen. Reynold Nesiba, D-Sioux Falls and one of the three no votes, said he was concerned the state would be sued because of the prohibition of state funds on influencing a ballot measure. Currently, signatures are being gathered to put a question to the voters in November if abortion should be in the state constitution.
More: Supporters and critics of abortion rights square off over ballot initiative language
Tobin responded that the bill was simply giving information to the public and wouldn’t impact people’s opinion.
“South Dakota is showing the rest of the nation how to protect women’s lives from the misinformation surrounding abortion laws," said Kelsey Pritchard, state public affairs director for SBA Pro-Life America, in response to the vote. “This bipartisan bill is uncontroversial, and a policy that pro-choice and pro-life Americans alike should support. We should all be supportive of making it abundantly clear that pregnant women can and must receive emergency care.”
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Abortion trigger law video explainer bill heads to Gov. Kristi Noem
