Assessing a Potential Deviation in the Legislative Process: The Use of Vehicle Bills in South Dakota
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2024
Disciplines
Law
Abstract
Vehicle bills are used by many state legislatures, including the South Dakota Legislature. These bills serve as empty shells to be amended with substantive text later in the legislative session. Critics charge that such vehicles allow legislators to meet the filing deadline with an essentially meaningless bill that gets amended late in the session, thereby depriving the public and opposition legislators from adequately investigating and debating the newly amended bill. This article examines how, and to what extent, the South Dakota Legislature has used vehicle bills over the past decade. In so doing, the article may provide some insight into how the use of these vehicle bills can affect the legislative process and its advancement of republican and democratic values.
Publication Title
South Dakota Law Review
Volume
69
First Page
148
Recommended Citation
Neil Fulton, Sarah Kammer & Patrick Garry, Assessing a Potential Deviation in the Legislative Process: The Use of Vehicle Bills in South Dakota, 69 S.D.L. Rev. 148 (2024).