Minnehaha County, SD Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

Trimming a tree on your own private property in unincorporated Minnehaha County does not require a county permit. Three overlay rules can apply. First, the Minnehaha County Highway Department controls vegetation in the right-of-way along county-maintained roads under SDCL Chapter 31-32 (Obstructions on Highways); landowners must keep trees and brush from obstructing the traveled way or sight distance, and the Highway Department may trim or remove obstructions and bill the abutting landowner under SDCL 31-32-1. Second, investor-owned electric utilities (Xcel Energy, MidAmerican Energy) and rural electric cooperatives (Sioux Valley Energy, East River Electric) trim for line clearance within their granted easements under SDCL Chapter 49-34A and South Dakota PUC rules, following ANSI A300 pruning standards and giving notice to landowners for non-emergency work. Third, South Dakota common law (the Massachusetts/Restatement rule) lets a property owner trim neighbor branches that overhang the property line, at the trimmer's own expense, without entering the neighbor's land — but the trimmer is liable for damages, potentially trebled under SDCL 21-3-3, if the trim kills or seriously damages a healthy tree. Inside Sioux Falls, the city's Forestry Division permits work on street trees and park trees under Title 95 (Streets and Public Places) of the city code. Other Minnehaha municipalities have similar street-tree permit rules; the county does not regulate trees inside any city.