South Dakota may owe at least $74,000 in attorney fees to Dakotans for Health, a ballot-question committee challenging a state law that shortens the signature-gathering period for ballot initiatives.
The fee agreement, reached last week, includes 3.64% interest and hinges on the group remaining the prevailing party in the lawsuit. The state is appealing a federal judge’s September ruling that blocked enforcement of the new law, which moved the petition deadline from May to February—cutting the circulation window by three months and violating First Amendment rights, according to the court.
The law originated from legislation introduced last winter by House Speaker Jon Hansen, a Republican gubernatorial candidate.
Petitioners must gather 17,508 signatures to propose a law or referendum, and 35,017 to propose a constitutional amendment.
The case, part of a broader debate over citizen lawmaking, follows years of legislative efforts to restrict ballot measures after voters approved initiatives on minimum wage, Medicaid expansion, and medical marijuana.
Dakotans for Health is represented by attorney Jim Leach of Rapid City; the state by Assistant Attorney General Grant Flynn.
Comments