South Dakota House passes controversial birth certificate bill authored by Deutsch

January 28, 2021

PIERRE, S.D.–The South Dakota House passed a controversial bill Wednesday requiring birth certificates issued by the state reflect the biological sex of the newborn.

House Bill 1076 was killed in committee Tuesday. Members of the full House scheduled the bill for floor debate anyway using a procedural maneuver known as a ‘smoke out.’ The bill was tacked onto the end of Wednesday’s calendar.

Rep. Fred Deutsch of Florence sponsored the bill. He says the bill is about capturing accurate data used in South Dakota’s vital records.

But Mission Democrat Rep. Shawn Bordeaux and others say the bill, “feels like an attack on people that are transgender.” Bordeaux went so far as to call the bill ‘Hitler-esqe’ in his testimony.

House lawmakers debated the bill for more than 45 minutes before calling the vote.

In the end, the bill passed 39-31. Now it goes to the Senate for further consideration.