South Dakota Funding Guide: ESA, Medicaid Waivers, and Homeschool Funding
Facts checked September 21, 2026 · 6-minute read · by the Brainrich Kids team
South Dakota has no education savings account; the 2025 bill died in committee and the 2026 session expanded the private school scholarship credit instead. Its Family Support 360 Waiver is unusual: the billing manual names platform swings and small indoor trampolines as covered sensory equipment, while excluding items used only for recreation or education.
The quick answer for South Dakota: South Dakota has no ESA. The Partners in Education tax-credit scholarship requires admission to a nonpublic school, and the 2026 SB 84 expansion kept that rule. There is no state income tax, so no credit. For a child with a developmental disability, the Family Support 360 Waiver (child's income only) lists "Specialized Medical and Adaptive Equipment and Supplies," with the manual's own examples including "small indoor trampolines" and "platform swings," and excludes items "used for leisure, recreation, education... only." The Disabled Children's Program is the state's TEFRA option. A play gym is case by case, and closer than most states.
Please read this first: program rules, amounts, and waitlists change every year, sometimes mid-year, and no vendor can promise that a program will approve a purchase. Every row below was checked against the linked source on September 21, 2026. Before you spend a dollar, confirm the current rules with the program itself.
Jump to: South Dakota facts table · Can this fund a Brainrich gym? · Next steps · FAQ · The full guides · Sources
South Dakota funding facts at a glance
Three kinds of public money can reach a family in South Dakota: an education account or scholarship, a Medicaid waiver for a child with a developmental disability, and any homeschool-specific tax benefit. Here is what each official source says.
| Question | What the official source says (South Dakota) | Source |
|---|---|---|
| ESA or scholarship program | No ESA. The 2025 ESA bill (HB 1020) was killed in House Education. SB 84, signed February 6, 2026, expanded the Partners in Education tax-credit scholarship, which requires admission to a qualifying nonpublic school. | SB 84 (2026) text |
| Who runs it | Not applicable. Family Support 360 is run by the DHS Division of Developmental Disabilities with DSS as the Medicaid agency. | SD DDD resource guide |
| Amount per student | Not applicable. South Dakota has no family-directed education account. | Ask the program |
| Who qualifies | Not applicable. South Dakota has no family-directed education account. | Ask the program |
| Can homeschoolers use it? | No program to use. Partners in Education requires nonpublic school admission, and South Dakota has no income tax to credit against. | SD Dept. of Labor and Regulation |
| Curriculum | Not applicable. South Dakota has no family-directed education account. | Ask the program |
| Therapies and therapy equipment | Not applicable. South Dakota has no family-directed education account. | Ask the program |
| PE and play equipment | Not applicable. South Dakota has no family-directed education account. | Ask the program |
| How purchases work | None. | Ask the program |
| Medicaid waiver for children | Family Support 360 Waiver (all ages, self-directed, children living with family; child's own income under 300% of SSI, family income excluded) and the CHOICES Waiver, both run by the DHS Division of Developmental Disabilities. | SD DDD resource guide |
| Equipment category to ask for | "Specialized Medical and Adaptive Equipment and Supplies": covered examples include "sensory equipment (sensory chew toys, small indoor trampolines, weighted blankets, platform swings, noise cancelling headphones, and sensory chairs)" and modified bicycles; not covered are items "used for leisure, recreation, education, and vocational purposes only." The manual says such equipment "should be less than $10,000 per month," with case-by-case exceptions. | FS360 billing manual |
| Waiver waitlist | An interest list exists. Official count: confirm with the program (secondary sources report about 185 people and a one- to two-year wait). | SD DDD resource guide |
| Katie Beckett or TEFRA option | Yes: the Disabled Children's Program (TEFRA), under 19, where parents' income and resources are not considered and the child's income must be under 300% of SSI. | SD DSS |
| Other homeschool funding | None found on official sources. | Ask the program |
A row that reads "Confirm with the program" means we could not verify that fact on an official source, so we left it open instead of guessing.
Can this fund a Brainrich gym in South Dakota?
A Brainrich gym is a steel indoor climbing frame: ladders, monkey bars, rings, a rope, and a swing point, for ages 3 and up with a parent in the same room. Programs do not approve brands. They approve categories, one purchase at a time. Here is how each lane looks today.
No program to use
South Dakota education funding
The scholarship credit pays nonpublic school tuition, and with no income tax there is no credit to claim. Nothing reaches a homeschool family's equipment budget.
Case by case
Family Support 360 Waiver
This is one of the few manuals in the country that names sensory equipment, including platform swings and small indoor trampolines, as covered under Specialized Medical and Adaptive Equipment and Supplies. The same manual excludes items used only for leisure, recreation, or education, so the request has to be framed around your child's sensory and functional needs by the therapist. Approval is decided case by case in your child's individual service plan, usually with an OT or PT recommendation attached, and most waivers pay only after regular Medicaid or private insurance has said no. No state approves play equipment automatically. Ask your service coordinator how a climbing frame would be classified before you buy.
Needs a Letter of Medical Necessity
HSA and FSA dollars (the same in every state)
HSA and FSA rules are federal, so South Dakota families follow the same path as everyone else: with a qualifying diagnosis and a Letter of Medical Necessity, a play gym may be eligible. Your plan administrator makes the final call. Start with is a play gym HSA/FSA eligible? and the Letter of Medical Necessity template.
What Brainrich does, and does not do. We never promise that a program will approve a purchase. That decision belongs to the program. Applications, service plans, and therapist letters are the family's and their professional's work.
The one document we provide is an itemized invoice or quote. Email info@brainrichkids.com with (1) your full name, (2) your address, and (3) the model and color. We send back the invoice with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total, ready for a case worker or a program portal.
🧩 A budget does not have to cover the whole build
Every Brainrich gym is modular. A Model T3 that fits this year's budget becomes a Spider V3 the day you add the Monkey Bars, and each add-on is its own purchase with its own invoice. Families fund the frame from one budget cycle and the expansion from a later one, out of pocket, or as a gift. That means matching real purchases to real budget cycles. It never means splitting a single purchase to slip under a review threshold, which programs treat as a red flag.
Next steps for South Dakota families
1. If your child has a developmental disability, call Dakota at Home (833-663-9673, option 2) to apply for Family Support 360. Eligibility uses the child's income only.
2. If family income blocks regular Medicaid, apply for the Disabled Children's Program (TEFRA), which does not count parental income.
3. When a case worker, support broker, or program portal asks for pricing, request an itemized invoice from us: email info@brainrichkids.com with your full name, your address, and the model and color. We reply with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total.
Frequently asked questions: South Dakota
Does South Dakota have an ESA (education savings account)? No. The 2025 ESA bill died in committee, and the 2026 SB 84 expanded the Partners in Education scholarship, which requires admission to a nonpublic school. South Dakota has no income tax, so there is no homeschool credit.
What funding can South Dakota homeschoolers use? No state education program applies. Families of children with developmental disabilities can use the Family Support 360 Waiver, plus HSA and FSA dollars with a Letter of Medical Necessity.
Can the South Dakota Family Support 360 Waiver pay for a play gym? Case by case. The billing manual lists sensory equipment including platform swings and small indoor trampolines under Specialized Medical and Adaptive Equipment and Supplies, and excludes items used only for leisure, recreation, or education. Approval depends on the child's plan and the therapist's documentation.
Which South Dakota Medicaid waiver can fund sensory or adaptive equipment? The Family Support 360 Waiver, which lists Specialized Medical and Adaptive Equipment and Supplies and Environmental Accessibility Adaptations, and the CHOICES Waiver. South Dakota also has a TEFRA option, the Disabled Children's Program, for children under 19.
Does Brainrich work with South Dakota funding programs? We provide the itemized invoice or quote that South Dakota programs and case workers ask for: email info@brainrichkids.com with your full name, your address, and the model and color, and we send it back with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total. We do not prepare applications or service plans, and we never promise that a program will approve a purchase. That decision belongs to the program.
📚 The full funding guides
Can You Buy PE and Play Equipment With ESA Funds? · State Disability Waiver Programs: All 50 States · Homeschool Grants and Funding, State by State · Is a Play Gym HSA/FSA Eligible? · Letter of Medical Necessity Template · Financial Assistance: every door in one place · Funding guides for other states
Sources
All sources checked September 21, 2026. SD DSS. Family Support 360 billing manual, October 2025. · SD DSS. Medical programs, Disabled Children's Program. · SD DHS. Division of Developmental Disabilities resource guide. · SD Legislature. SB 84 (2026) action log. · SD Legislature. SB 84 (2026) text. · SD Department of Labor and Regulation. Partners in Education tax credit program.