South Dakota bars unsolicited sales calls and texts on Sundays, and on other days it doesn’t allow them before 9 a.m. or after 9 p.m. at the consumer’s local time. That’s stricter than the federal window. A separate Do Not Call statute lets the state commission fine businesses that call listed numbers. A business that can show an exemption or a preexisting relationship has solid defenses, though it carries the burden of proving the exemption.
Does South Dakota’s telemarketing law cover text messages?
Yes. The definitions in SDCL § 37-30A-1 now refer to texts. An “Unsolicited consumer telephone communication” is “a consumer telephone call or text” other than one made in response to an express request, in connection with an existing debt or contract, to a person with an existing business relationship, by a newspaper publisher, or to set an appointment with a licensed professional. The section’s history shows a 2020 amendment, and the text language appears in the current version.
The chapter applies to a “Telemarketer,” which includes any person who initiates the sale of consumer goods or services “by text, telephonic means, or by postcard or other written notice sent through the mail.” Sales to businesses fall outside it, because under the same definitions consumer goods or services are those used “for personal, family, or household purposes.” Under § 37-30A-12, a sale is treated as taking place where the consumer is, “regardless of the location of the telemarketer.”
When can a business call or text South Dakota residents?
Monday through Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Under § 37-30A-3, a telemarketer may not place unsolicited consumer telephone communications “to any residence which will be received before 9 a.m. or after 9 p.m. at the consumer’s local time or place any unsolicited consumer telephone communications on Sunday.” The federal rule at 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)(1) starts at 8 a.m., so a national campaign set to the federal window will reach South Dakota residents an hour early.
The Sunday ban is the easier rule to miss. A text promotion scheduled for a Sunday goes to every number on the list unless South Dakota numbers are held back. The fix is a state-level suppression rule on the scheduling platform, based on the consumer’s area code or billing address, and it’s worth testing before the next weekend campaign.
What must a South Dakota sales call include?
Four things. Under § 37-30A-2, a telemarketer making an unsolicited consumer telephone communication to a residential number must display its “authentic name or entity and telephone number” on caller ID and must “Immediately identify themselves” along with the business and the purpose of the communication. It also must, “Within thirty seconds after beginning the conversation, inquire whether the person being solicited is interested in listening to a sales presentation,” and stop if the answer is no.
The fourth rule follows from the third. The statute says the caller must “Immediately hang up the telephone at any time during the solicitation that the consumer expresses a disinterest in the good or service offered.” Scripts that push past a first refusal, or that delay the permission question until after an opening pitch, create exposure even when the number was properly scrubbed.
How does South Dakota’s Do Not Call register work?
It’s run by the state Public Utilities Commission and can be the national list itself. Under § 49-31-99, “No telephone solicitor may make an unsolicited telephone call to any number listed on the register.” Section 49-31-103 says the commission may use the national do-not-call registry as the register, and § 49-31-102 requires a telephone solicitor making unsolicited calls to “obtain a copy of the register.” A separate section, § 49-31-105, requires an annual payment to the commission from solicitors making those calls.
The register statute includes a grace period. Under § 49-31-108, a solicitation to a person whose name first appears on the register isn’t a violation “if the solicitation is made within thirty days of the receipt of the register.” The definition of a residential telephone subscriber in § 49-31-1 includes “cellular service,” so the register reaches cell phones used primarily for personal purposes.
| South Dakota rule | Statute | Exposure and its conditions | Defense to look for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday ban and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. window | § 37-30A-3 | Consumer claim for a willful violation | Exemption, scheduling records |
| Caller ID, identification, 30-second permission question | § 37-30A-2 | Consumer claim for a willful violation | Scripts, recordings |
| Do Not Call register | § 49-31-99 | Commission civil fine up to $5,000 per offense | 30-day grace period, good faith |
| Federal Do Not Call | 47 U.S.C. § 227(c)(5) | Up to $500 per violation, up to treble if willful or knowing | Consent, business relationship, procedures |
What exposure does a business face in South Dakota?
Two state paths, both with conditions. A consumer can sue under § 37-30A-14 for “twice the actual damages suffered or five hundred dollars, whichever is greater,” for “a willful act or practice,” plus court costs and attorney fees. A willful violation is also an unfair or deceptive trade practice under § 37-30A-13. The register statute is enforced by the commission, which under § 49-31-108 “may impose a civil fine of not more than five thousand dollars for each offense.”
Good faith counts in the commission’s math. The same section tells the commission to consider “the appropriateness of the penalty to the size of the business of the person charged, prior offenses and compliance history, and the good faith of the person charged in attempting to achieve compliance.” A documented compliance program is evidence on that last factor, and the post on internal do-not-call policies covers what one looks like. For multistate campaigns, TCPA litigation defense usually means tracking state rules like these alongside the federal ones, as the post on Tennessee’s Do Not Call law shows for another state.
Which transactions are excluded?
Several, but the business has to prove them. Section 37-30A-8 excludes a transaction by a merchant with “a fixed permanent location” that sells on a continuing basis, if less than a quarter of its total new sales come from unsolicited consumer telephone communications. It also excludes a business establishing a business-to-business relationship or with “a clear, preexisting business relationship with the consumer,” if the consumer learned the business’s full name and contact details through that relationship. Under § 37-30A-17, “A telemarketer claiming an exemption from the provisions of this chapter has the burden of proving the exemption.”
Records to assemble for a South Dakota telemarketing claim
- Put a litigation hold on call and text logs, dialer and platform data, and consent records for the South Dakota numbers, including send times and days of the week.
- Pull the opt-out and internal do-not-call logs with dates, plus records of any call where the consumer declined the sales presentation.
- Pull the register and national Registry scrub records, with the date each copy of the list was received.
- Collect vendor and lead-source contracts, along with scripts and any prerecorded or AI-voice files that show the 30-second permission question.
- Talk to a lawyer before responding to the commission or the consumer, or offering anything to settle.
Questions about South Dakota telemarketing rules
Can a business text South Dakota customers on Sunday?
Texts to people with an existing business relationship, or texts the consumer expressly requested, aren’t unsolicited communications under the definitions, so the Sunday ban in § 37-30A-3 doesn’t reach them. Marketing texts to anyone else shouldn’t go out on Sunday. Because the business bears the burden of proving an exemption, it should keep records showing the relationship or request for each number it texts on weekends.
Does the South Dakota law apply to an out-of-state company?
Yes. Section 37-30A-12 treats a telemarketing sale as taking place “in the state where the consumer is located, regardless of the location of the telemarketer.” A company in Minnesota or California that calls or texts South Dakota residents is subject to the chapter’s calling hours, the Sunday ban, and the disclosure rules.
Is a single violation enough for a consumer lawsuit?
The private claim in § 37-30A-14 doesn’t require a minimum number of contacts, but it does require a willful act or practice and a consumer who “claims to have been adversely affected.” Recovery is the greater of twice actual damages or $500. A business that followed its procedures and made an isolated mistake has a real argument that the violation wasn’t willful.
Is the 30-day register grace period the same as the federal one?
They work differently. South Dakota’s grace period in § 49-31-108 runs from the solicitor’s receipt of the register and protects a call to a person whose name first appears on it. The federal safe harbor calls for using a version of the national Registry obtained no more than 31 days before the call, as the FCC’s rules set out. A business should keep the receipt date of every list it uses.
Defending a South Dakota telemarketing claim
If your company has been sued by a South Dakota consumer or contacted by the state commission about sales calls or texts, the send-time records and the proof of any exemption usually decide the outcome. Rosenberger + Kawabata represents businesses defending TCPA lawsuits and class actions through its business litigation practice, including claims involving marketing texts sent outside state calling hours. Contact Rosenberger + Kawabata online for a confidential consultation, or call (310) 894-6921.
Sources
The South Dakota statutes are SDCL § 37-30A-1, § 37-30A-2, § 37-30A-3, § 37-30A-8, § 37-30A-12, § 37-30A-13, § 37-30A-14, § 37-30A-17, § 49-31-1, § 49-31-99, § 49-31-102, § 49-31-103, § 49-31-105, and § 49-31-108. The federal statute is the Telephone Consumer Protection Act at 47 U.S.C. § 227, and the FCC’s rules are at 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200.
This post is general information about the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and related laws as of April 21, 2026. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Courts and the FCC change the rules in this area often, and the outcome of any claim depends on its facts. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.