PIERRE, S.D. – Members of the State House passed a controversial bill requiring birth certificates issued by the state reflect the biological sex of the newborn.
HB1076 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 state 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-eqe’ in his testimony.
Sioux Falls freshman lawmaker Rep. Bethany Soye stood to disagree. She and others argued that the bill is about the definition of truth and accurately reflecting that truth on state vital records.
House lawmakers debated the bill for more than 45 minutes before calling the vote.
In the end, HB1076 passed with a 39 yea, 31 nea vote. The bill will next go to the Senate for further consideration.
