South Dakota Alcohol & Drugs practice test

Practice blood alcohol limits, DUI rules and medication: 31 questions based on the South Dakota Driver's License Manual, 14 of them on South Dakota's own rules.

Key South Dakota facts: Alcohol & Drugs

Sample Alcohol & Drugs questions

You hold a license from a state with no implied consent law and are arrested for DWI in South Dakota. Which state's implied consent law applies?

  • Federal law only
  • Your home state's, because it issued the license
  • None, because your home state has no such law
  • South Dakota's, because that is where you were arrested
Show the answer

South Dakota's, because that is where you were arrested

The law of the state where the arrest happens applies.

Source: South Dakota Driver License Manual (revised 11/2024), Be in Shape to Drive, Alcohol and the Law, PDF p. 20

Drinking alcohol in a vehicle on a public highway is what level of offense in South Dakota?

  • A petty offense
  • A Class 1 misdemeanor
  • A Class 2 misdemeanor
  • A Class 6 felony
Show the answer

A Class 2 misdemeanor

Carrying alcohol is not an offense if the original seal is unbroken or the drink is kept where no one in the vehicle can reach it.

Source: SDCL 35-1-9.1, SDCL 35-1-9.1

Which is enough for a DWI arrest when your blood alcohol is over the legal limit?

  • Causing a crash with injuries to another person
  • Physical control of the vehicle, even without driving
  • Driving the vehicle at more than 55 mph
  • Actually driving on a state highway after dark
Show the answer

Physical control of the vehicle, even without driving

The law covers drivers and people in actual physical control of the vehicle.

Source: South Dakota Driver License Manual (revised 11/2024), Be in Shape to Drive, Alcohol, Other Drugs, and Driving, PDF p. 20; SDCL 32-23-1, SDCL 32-23-1

What happens after a first conviction for a driver under 21 who has 0.02% or more alcohol in the blood?

  • A Class 1 misdemeanor and a one-year suspension
  • A Class 2 misdemeanor and a 30-day license suspension
  • A Class 2 misdemeanor and a 180-day suspension
  • A petty offense with no effect on the license
Show the answer

A Class 2 misdemeanor and a 30-day license suspension

A second offense carries a 180-day loss of the license.

Source: South Dakota Driver License Manual (revised 11/2024), Be in Shape to Drive, Alcohol and the Law, PDF p. 20; SDCL 32-23-21, SDCL 32-23-21, second paragraph

A 19-year-old is convicted for the first time of possessing or drinking alcohol while in a vehicle. What happens to the driver license?

  • The court suspends it for one year
  • The court suspends it for 30 days
  • Nothing happens, since the minor was not drinking and driving
  • The court cancels it permanently
Show the answer

The court suspends it for 30 days

A second conviction means a 180-day suspension.

Source: South Dakota Driver License Manual (revised 11/2024), The Driver's License, Loss of Driving Privileges, PDF p. 12; SDCL 32-12-52.4, SDCL 32-12-52.4

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About these questions

We wrote these practice questions from the facts in the South Dakota Driver's License Manual (Driver's License Manual (English), South Dakota Department of Public Safety, Driver Licensing Program; 72 PDF pages, the last page says 'REVISED 11/2024' (PDF file metadata: created 2025-12-02, modified 2026-06-30); linked as 'Driver's License Manual - English' on the DPS page South Dakota Driver License and Motorcycle Manuals (https://www.sd.gov/dps?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB0043733), read 2026-11-10. Page numbers cited are PDF pages, which equal the printed page numbers. PDF pp. 15-16 (blood stem cell and organ donor pages) and 69-70 (office lists) were not used. The manual has no speed-limit, insurance-minimum or crash-reporting-threshold sections, so those rules come from South Dakota Codified Laws read on sdlegislature.gov on 2026-11-10 (Titles 22, 32, 35 and ARSD 61:06:01:06); the section lists showed no amendment after SL 2025. Handbook statements that differ from or go beyond current law and how they were handled: (1) rural-highway parking (PDF p. 43: 15 feet of road width, visible 500 feet) differs from SDCL 32-30-2 (20 feet clear width, clear view from 200 feet); not tested, and the owner may want to note it; (2) first-offense DWI penalty text (PDF p. 20: fine $300-$1,000, 15-365 days in jail, license loss 90-365 days) differs from SDCL 32-23-2 (Class 1 misdemeanor, court must revoke at least 30 days, up to one year in jail and $2,000); questions use the statute and the 30-day minimum the manual also gives; (3) zero tolerance (PDF p. 20: 'second or subsequent' 180 days) differs from SDCL 32-23-21 (one year for a third or later offense); only first and second offenses are tested; (4) phones (PDF p. 19 lists texting, reading texts and social networking) is narrower than SDCL 32-26-47.1 (any mobile electronic device, Class 2 misdemeanor, exceptions for calls, emergencies, navigation and hands-free use); questions follow the statute; (5) the instruction permit section (PDF p. 8) omits the SDCL 32-12-11 rule that between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. a parent or guardian must sit beside the holder; a question uses the statute; (6) the restricted permit section (PDF p. 8) omits the SDCL 32-12-12.5 limit of one non-family passenger under 18 after six months; questions use the statute and the DPS teen page; (7) school buses (PDF p. 43 says always stop for red lights) omits SDCL 32-32-6 details (stop at least 15 feet away, amber lights mean 15 mph or less on roads with fewer than two lanes each way, no stop for a bus on the other side of a road with two or more lanes each way); questions use the statute; (8) following distance is a minimum of 4 seconds in the manual (PDF p. 51) but the DPS teen page tip says to teach the three-second rule, so following_seconds uses the manual and is noted; (9) large-truck stopping distance is 290 feet (PDF p. 62) and 335 feet (PDF p. 63), so it is not tested; (10) the 200-foot distance behind snowplows (PDF p. 67) and the 500-foot U-turn sight distance (PDF p. 39) were not found in the statutes read, so they are not tested; (11) the manual is silent on left turn on red, which SDCL 32-28-4.1 leaves to city ordinance for one-way-to-one-way turns; a question uses the statute. Fees (PDF p. 7), points (PDF p. 14), window tint (PDF p. 24) and move-over (PDF p. 2) match the statutes. edition) and from official sources on road signs. Every answer links to its source, so you can check it and read more.

DMV Decoded is an independent guide, not a government agency. This practice test is not connected to the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, Driver Licensing Program, and your actual test will have different questions. Study the handbook, and check the agency's website for current rules.