South Dakota HC8024: honoring the life and legacy of Elizabeth Cook-Lynn.

What the bill says

From the enrolled text, March 10, 2026:

2026 House Commemoration 8024 - SD Legislature honoring the life and legacy of Elizabeth Cook-Lynn. South Dakota Legislature House Commemoration 8024 Introduced by: Representatives Pourier, Emery, Gosch, Moore, Muckey, Novstrup, and Shorma and Senators Foster, Duhamel, and Perry A LEGISLATIVE COMMEMORATION honoring the life and legacy of Elizabeth Cook-Lynn. WHEREAS, Elizabeth Cook-Lynn, a citizen of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe and widely regarded as the godmother of Native American studies, pioneered the field through her writing, scholarship, and advocacy; and WHEREAS, holding faculty positions at Eastern Washington University and Arizona State University, where she helped found the Native American studies program, Elizabeth Cook-Lynn contributed to Indigenous-centered curricula and created academic spaces where Native stories, languages, and philosophies were dignified and acknowledged as important areas of study; and WHEREAS, Cook-Lynn's published works, foundational in Native American studies and Indigenous literature, have contributed to a wider understanding of Native nations as sovereign political and cultural entities with inherent rights; and WHEREAS, throughout her life, she used her voice to speak to and for the land, and encouraged young people and readers and listeners to do the same, reminding people of the connection Native nations have with their territories and the resulting moral obligations; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT COMMEMORATED, by the One Hundred First Legislature of the State of South Dakota, that the …

Read the full official text

Sponsors

• Red Foster (D, SD-027) · primary sponsor
• Peri Pourier (R, HD-027) · primary sponsor
• Helene Duhamel (R, SD-032)
• Eric Emery (D, HD-026)
• Spencer Gosch (R, HD-023)
• Scott Moore (R, HD-023)
• Erik Muckey (D, HD-015)
• Al Novstrup (R, HD-003)
• Carl Perry (R, 03)
• William Shorma (R, HD-017)

Latest actions

1. March 4, 2026: Commemorations

Common questions

What is HC8024?

HC8024 is a bill in the South Dakota Legislature (101st Legislature (2026)): honoring the life and legacy of Elizabeth Cook-Lynn.

What is the status of HC8024?

Introduced as of March 4, 2026. Latest action: Commemorations (March 4, 2026).

Who sponsored HC8024?

Red Foster (D, SD-027), with 9 co-sponsors.

Where is the official record for HC8024?

On the South Dakota Legislature website: https://sdlegislature.gov/Session/Bill/27343