WeedPress: The Paper Trail

The department is writing changes to South Dakota’s medical cannabis law, and the public isn’t being allowed to see them. Hot Springs says it was told the draft isn’t a public record.

By Jason Karimi, Publisher

The South Dakota Department of Health is drafting a bill for the 2027 legislative session to change the state’s medical cannabis law, SDCL chapter 34-20G, and the draft is being withheld from the public.¹,²

When WeedPress asked the City of Hot Springs for a copy, the city refused. “We have been told that the draft legislation is not considered public record and is not subject to release through an open records request,” City Administrator Aerial Allison wrote Tuesday.³,⁴

WeedPress first reported the department’s plans Tuesday morning, based on a Sept. 21 department email the city released under the state’s open records law.²

What the bill would do

What is known about the bill comes from that one email. In it, the department’s Office of Medical Cannabis said it was “preparing legislation for the 2027 Legislative Session to revise SDCL 34-20G-55, 34-20G-56, 34-20G-58, and 34-20G-72,” four sections of the state’s medical cannabis law.¹,⁵

According to the email, the changes “would give municipalities and counties express authority to establish and apply rules for determining registration preferences when more applicants seek registration than the local numerical limit allows and would remove or modify certain Department requirements for establishments applying for state certification.”¹

The email does not say which requirements would be removed or modified, or what local rules for choosing among applicants for establishment registrations would be allowed.¹

The draft

The Sept. 21 email said the department would hold a virtual stakeholder meeting “for municipalities to provide feedback on the proposed legislation” and that “the draft legislation will be distributed prior to the meeting.”¹ It does not give a meeting date or show which cities received it.¹

On Nov. 2, WeedPress asked Hot Springs for the draft and any invitation, agenda or follow-up about the meeting under the open records law.³ Allison’s Nov. 3 reply, quoted above, was the city’s full answer. It did not say whether the city had received the draft.⁴

As of Nov. 3, the Legislature’s website listed no bills for the 2027 session.⁶ The session opens Jan. 12, 2027.⁷ Any bill the department files could differ from the plan described in the email.

Requests for comment

WeedPress asked the Department of Health on Nov. 2 for a copy of the draft and for answers to questions about the bill and the stakeholder meeting, with a deadline of 5 p.m. CT Wednesday, Nov. 4.⁸ A department spokesperson replied Nov. 2 that records requests go through the state’s open records portal and that the department would answer the press questions separately.⁹ It had not answered them as of Tuesday afternoon.

WeedPress filed a records request through the portal on Nov. 2, No. PUBRECREQ0007221, for the draft, the meeting invitation and recipient list, meeting materials and comments from municipalities or counties.¹⁰ The request is pending. Under state law, a public record officer must respond to a written request within 10 business days.¹¹

This story will be updated with any response.

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