SD Cannabis Advocacy — CIASD, NORML, New Approach SD, MPP, SDBML

Last verified: May 2026

Cannabis Industry Association of South Dakota (CIASD)

• Website: ciasd.com
• Founded: January 2021
• Acting executive director (founding): Ned Horsted
• Recent chair: Deb Peters
• Lobbyist: Jeremiah Murphy
• Board: includes representatives of FSST Pharms, Genesis Farms / Deadwood Management, and other licensees.

CIASD hosts member networking, lobby day, and educational events. The principal industry-side advocacy organization in SD.

South Dakota NORML

• SD-penalty schedule: norml.org/laws/south-dakota-penalties-2/
• SD-medical-law summary: norml.org/laws/medical-marijuana/south-dakota-medical-marijuana-law/

Consumer-side cannabis advocacy and patient-education.

New Approach South Dakota

• Founder: Melissa Mentele
• The original sponsor of IM 26 medical cannabis, which passed 70% in November 2020.
• Mentele’s organizing work in 2018 (failed signature drives) and 2020 (successful) was foundational to SD medical-cannabis legalization.

South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws (SDBML)

• Campaign director: Matthew Schweich (also Marijuana Policy Project deputy director).
• Sponsored measures:
  • Constitutional Amendment A (2020) — passed 54.18%/45.82%; struck down by SD Supreme Court Nov 24, 2021.
  • Initiated Measure 27 (2022) — failed 52.92% no / 47.08% yes.
  • Initiated Measure 29 (2024) — failed ~55.6% no / ~44.4% yes.
• Schweich publicly stated after the 2024 IM 29 defeat: "If they say no, we are done, at least I am."
• As of May 2026, no SDBML-led 2026 ballot measure was certified.

Marijuana Policy Project (MPP)

• SD page: mpp.org/states/south-dakota/
• National multi-state cannabis policy organization; substantial role in SD ballot work through Schweich and SDBML.
• Commentary at 2026 Carley repeal-bill rejection: "Forty states have medical programs. None have repealed."

ACLU of South Dakota

SD ACLU handles civil-rights cases including Fourth Amendment challenges relating to highway interdiction, search-and-seizure questions, and disparate-enforcement litigation. The ACLU has not been the principal cannabis-policy-reform advocate (that role has been SDBML / NORML), but it provides important amicus and litigation support.

Major Operators (Industry Voice)

• Genesis Farms (COO Emmett Reistroffer) — genesisfarmscannabis.com.
• Puffy’s Dispensary (Kittrick Jeffries CEO) — Rapid City + Sturgis.
• Native Nations Cannabis (FSST) — nativenationsenterprises.com (Flandreau).
• The Flower Shop — flowershopdispensary.com (Sioux Falls, Brookings, Mitchell, Aberdeen).
• Dakota Herb / Big Sioux Bud — Brandon, Aberdeen, Vermillion, Huron.
• 605 Cannabis (Badlands) — Lincoln County.
• Greenlight Dispensary (CEO John Mueller) — multistate operator with 3 SD dispensaries.

Tribal Cannabis Programs

• Native Nations Cannabis (FSST Pharms LLC) — Flandreau Santee Sioux tribal program.
• No Worries Dispensary (Adonis Saltes) — Pine Ridge / Oglala Sioux Tribe.

Legal-Services Note

Patients, employees, and defendants navigating SD cannabis law should consult licensed SD attorneys. Particular attention is warranted around:

• The unique "internal possession" exposure under SDCL § 22-42-5.1.
• The 5 ng/mL THC per se DUI threshold.
• The federal interstate-transport prohibition that applies even between two legal states.
• Employment-at-will exposure including federal-employer drug-testing.
• Civil-asset-forfeiture proceedings.

The State Bar of South Dakota maintains a lawyer-referral service: statebarofsouthdakota.com.

Related on this site: SD Cannabis Official Sources, Send a Message, Contact CannabisSouthDakota.org.