ENTITLED An Act to create a task force to study the provision of emergency medical services as an essential service and the funding thereof.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of South Dakota:

Section 1. The Executive Board of the Legislative Research Council shall establish the Emergency Medical Services Funding Task Force. The task force shall:

(1) Examine mechanisms to fund counties and municipalities for the provision of emergency medical services as an essential service;

(2) Examine policies for ambulance service payments, including reimbursement standards for out of network emergency medical services;

(3) Seek input from relevant stakeholders on the provision of emergency medical services as an essential service;

(4) Provide to the executive board, no later than November 1, 2026, a report containing findings and recommendations for legislative proposals related to the funding of emergency medical services in this state; and

(5) Review planned expenditures of the Rural Health Transformation program and evaluate opportunities to incorporate the funds into emergency medical services funding strategies.

The task force shall meet no more than five times during the 2026 interim. The task force is dissolved upon the delivery of the task force's report to the executive board.

Section 2. The Emergency Medical Services Funding Task Force consists of:

(1) The chairs of the health and human services committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate;

(2) The chairs of the taxation committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate;

(3) Four members of the House of Representatives, one of whom must be a member of the minority party, appointed by the Executive Board of the Legislative Research Council; and

(4) Three members of the Senate, one of whom must be a member of the minority party, appointed by the executive board.

If the chair of a committee is unable to serve on the task force, the Executive Board of the Legislative Research Council may appoint another member of the committee to serve in the chair's place.

An Act to create a task force to study the provision of emergency medical services as an essential service and the funding thereof.