revise a provision related to the venue of adoption proceedings.
HB 1197 clarifies the court where adoption cases must be filed in South Dakota. It specifies that adoption petitions must be filed in a county where the adopting parent resides, the child's care agency is located, or the child was born/resides - unchanged from current law. The bill streamlines the language of existing rules without adding new options or altering the process. This procedural update directly affects adoption cases and the courts handling them, ensuring clarity in venue selection. (2 sentences, as it is a procedural clarification).
Bill status
signed
all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Feb 2026
House Passage
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Mar 2026
Signed into Law
Mar 2026
Introduced Jan 29, 2026
Signed Mar 4, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
Introduced
→
Enrolled
·
3 edits
·
Feb 26, 2026
MINOR
The bill text was completely replaced with the official enrolled version of House Bill 1197, which includes the final legislative text, signatures, and certification details. The substantive policy content regarding adoption venue remains unchanged; the differences are purely formatting and procedural, reflecting the bill's final passage and approval by the Governor.
Scope change
No change to the bill's scope or applicability; the text now includes the official enrolled status and signatures.
TECHNICAL
Removed browser compatibility warnings and loading messages from the web interface.
Added the full enrolled bill text, including the official title, section amendments, and signature blocks from the House, Senate, and Governor.
Replaced the draft bill interface with the final, signed legislative document.
Floor votes · House Feb 9, 2026
How they voted
This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
13
Key actions
8
Committee
2
Mar 4, 2026
Signed into law
Signed by the Governor on 2026-03-04 H.J. 496
executive
Mar 2, 2026
Upper · Passed
Signed by the President S.J. 434
upper
Feb 26, 2026
Upper · Passed
Signed by the Speaker H.J. 462
upper
Feb 25, 2026
Upper · Passed
Senate Do Pass , Passed, YEAS 33, NAYS 0 S.J. 399
upper
Feb 24, 2026
Upper · Passed
Certified uncontested, placed on consent , Passed, S.J. 29
upper
Feb 24, 2026
Upper · Passed
Judiciary Do Pass , Passed, YEAS 7, NAYS 0 S.J. 29
upper
Feb 10, 2026
Introduced
First read in Senate and referred to Senate Judiciary S.J. 232
upper
Feb 9, 2026
Lower · Passed
House of Representatives Do Pass , Passed, YEAS 65, NAYS 0 H.J. 267
lower
Feb 6, 2026
Lower · Passed
Judiciary Do Pass , Passed, YEAS 10, NAYS 1 H.J. 14
lower
Jan 29, 2026
Introduced
First read in House and referred to House Judiciary H.J. 178
lower
11 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
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