SOUTH DAKOTA
NPO AFFILIATE | SD
STATE CHAIR: Eric Grover
VICE-CHAIR: Derek Gulbrandson
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS ADVOCATE: Zac Martin
Highlights:
In instances of divorce or separation:
98% of those in South Dakota believe it is in the child’s best interest to have as much time as possible with each parent.
96% in South Dakota expressed a commitment to vote their beliefs in being “more likely to vote for a candidate who supports children spending equal or nearly equal time with each parent following separation or divorce when both parents are fit and willing to be parents.
84% support a change in South Dakota Law that creates a rebuttable presumption that shared parenting is in the best interest of a child after a parental separation.
85% believe that when there is conflict between parents, awarding sole custody to one parent increases conflict
93% believe that both parents should have equal rights and responsibilities following divorce or separation.
2022 NPO Child Support And Shared Parenting Report Card
WHY DID SOUTH DAKOTA RECEIVE AN F+?
POSITIVES:
South Dakota's PTA appropriately takes into account the effect of the PTA on both parents' households.
South Dakota's PTA appropriately results in no presumptive child support transfer payment when parental income and parenting time are both equal.
NEGATIVES:
South Dakota's PTA has an extraordinarily and unjustifiably high threshold of 180 days.
South Dakota's PTA has an extremely large discontinuity (or discontinuities), creating an extremely large cliff effect or multiple cliff effects.
South Dakota's PTA significantly overestimates the fixed, duplicated costs involved in shared parenting.
2019 NPO Shared Parenting Report Card
WHY DID SOUTH DAKOTA RECEIVE A B-?
POSITIVES:
South Dakota statutes empower a court to order joint legal custody so that both parents retain full parental decision-making authority or to divide decision-making authority between the parents. S. D. Codified Laws § 25-5-7.1
South Dakota statutes have been strengthened to effectively establish a presumption in favor of equal parenting time during temporary orders. S. D. Codified Laws § 25-4A-13
South Dakota statutes expressly permit the court to “order joint physical custody in such proportions as are in the best interests of the child, notwithstanding the objection of either parent.” S. D. Codified Laws § 25-5-7.1
South Dakota statutes direct courts in ways that are designed to promote joint custody. Courts are required to consider “friendly parent” factors (including whether a parent has alienated a child from the other parent) and “[w] hether the psychological and emotional needs and the development of the child will suffer due to lack of active contact with, and attention from, both parents if joint physical custody is not granted. S. D. Codified Laws § 25-4A-24
South Dakota statutes treat false allegations of abuse as a factor in custody decisions.S. D. Codified Laws § 25-4A-24
South Dakota statutes provide that, while an unmarried mother is entitled to custody of the child, this does not create a presumption that it is the child’s best interest and a change of this initial custody determination does not require a change in circumstances.S.D. Codified laws 25-5-10.1
NEGATIVES:
South Dakota has no statutory preference for, or presumption of, shared parenting (joint legal custody and shared physical custody) for temporary or final orders. S. D. Codified Laws § 25-4A-26
South Dakota statute does not contain any policy statement or other language encouraging shared parenting.
South Dakota statutes specify that “[t]he husband and father, as such, has no rights superior to those of the wife and mother in regard to the care, custody, education, and control of the children of the marriage, while such husband separate and apart from each other. S. D. Codified Laws § 25-5-8 There is no similar provision specifying that the wife and mother, as such, has no rights superior to those of the husband and father in these respects.