HB 1209

 26.765.11  101st Legislative Session  1209
                                        2026 South Dakota Legislature
                                                House Bill 1209
                                               SENATE STATE AFFAIRS ENGROSSED
 Introduced by: Representative Garcia
1 An Act to require employment verification eligibility through the e-verify program
2and to provide a penalty therefor.
3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA:
4 Section 1. That a NEW SECTION be added to chapter 60-2:
5Every employer, as defined in § 61-1-4, with more than fifty employees, after
6     hiring an employee, shall, within twenty days of the employee's first day of work, verify
7     the employment eligibility of the employee through the United States Department of
8     Homeland Security's e-verify program, and shall keep a record of the verification for the
9     duration of the employee's employment.
10An employer is not liable for failure to timely comply with this section if the e-verify
11     program is temporarily unavailable. Once the e-verify program becomes available again
12     following a temporary pause, the employer has twenty days to verify the employment
13     eligibility through the e-verify program.
14 Section 2. That a NEW SECTION be added to chapter 60-2:
15The attorney general may, upon receipt of a complaint, investigate an alleged
16     violation of section 1 of this Act. If the attorney general deems the complaint meritorious
17     and receives written confirmation from the United States Department of Homeland
18     Security or the United States Department of Justice that an employer has knowingly
19     employed an unauthorized person in violation of federal immigration law, the attorney
20     general may recover a civil penalty of two-thousand dollars for each violation. The
21     attorney general shall forward to the state treasurer for deposit in the general fund any
22     civil penalty recovered pursuant to this section.
23An employer who uses the e-verify in good faith and maintains the verification
24     record is not liable for any civil penalty arising from an employee's work authorization. An
                                                                                  Underscores indicate new language.
                                                                                Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
26.765.11  2  1209
1    employer is not liable for the actions of a third-party staffing agency, subcontractor, or
2    labor contractor, unless the employer knowingly participated in a violation.
3 Section 3. That a NEW SECTION be added to chapter 60-2:
4Any individual may not knowingly submit false information or documents to an
5    employer to evade determination of employment eligibility under the e-verify program.
6A violation of this section is a Class 1 misdemeanor.
                                                                            Underscores indicate new language.
                                                                          Overstrikes indicate deleted language.