HB 1045 updates South Dakota's child support rules to establish a minimum income threshold for calculating support obligations and clarifies when judges can deviate from standard support amounts. The bill presumes parents can earn at least the state minimum wage for 1,820 hours annually, adds protections against excessive support orders (presuming hardship if support exceeds 50% of monthly income), and expands factors judges must consider when departing from standard guidelines, such as a subsequent spouse's income or a parent's voluntary unemployment.
The amendment updates the effective date for modifying pre-existing child support orders from July 1, 2022 to July 1, 2026, and reorganizes and clarifies the rules for imputing income to parents in child support cases by consolidating multiple provisions into a more streamlined framework that specifies when income can be imputed and what factors courts should consider. This change primarily clarifies and restructures the income imputation procedures rather than substantially weakening or strengthening the bill's original child support revision purpose.
The amendment adds a new section (25-7-6.10) that establishes detailed deviation factors for child support calculations, including a presumption that obligations exceeding fifty percent of monthly net income constitute financial hardship, and updates the effective date in § 25-7-6.13 from July 1, 2022 to July 1, 2026. This change **broadens** the bill by providing clearer guidance on when courts can deviate from standard child support schedules and giving obligors stronger presumptive grounds to challenge excessive obligations.
The amendment makes largely technical and procedural changes to HB1045, primarily simplifying the language around child support income presumptions by removing the cross-reference to § 25-7-6.26 in the opening section and updating an effective date from 2022 to 2026, while also clarifying minor wording throughout—these changes NARROW the bill's scope by consolidating income imputation rules into a single section rather than distributing them across multiple provisions.
Other amendments
Signed by the Governor H.J. 571
Delivered to the Governor H.J. 556
Signed by the President S.J. 512
Signed by the Speaker H.J. 542
Senate Do Pass Amended Passed, YEAS 34, NAYS 0. S.J. 481
Judiciary Certified uncontested, placed on consent S.J. 31
Judiciary Do Pass Passed, YEAS 6, NAYS 0. S.J. 31
Judiciary Scheduled for hearing S.J. 1
First read in Senate and referred to Senate Judiciary S.J. 357
House of Representatives Do Pass Amended Passed, YEAS 67, NAYS 0. H.J. 389
House of Representatives Motion to amend H.J. 389
Judiciary Do Pass Amended Passed, YEAS 10, NAYS 1.
Judiciary Motion to amend
Judiciary Scheduled for hearing
First read in House and referred to House Judiciary H.J. 13
Judiciary — Do Pass
Do Pass Amended
Judiciary — Do Pass Amended