[1] He was the second of eight children of Henry and Evelyn Heinz Billion, and grew up in what is commonly known as the "north end" of Sioux Falls.
He received his BA degree from Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa and was admitted to the Loyola University Chicago in August 1960.
[1] He was awarded his Doctor of Medicine degree in 1964 and began his internship and residency training at St. Francis Hospital in Peoria, Illinois.
In 1992, Billion was elected, along with fellow Democrat Linda Barker, as one of two South Dakota State Representatives from the Sioux Falls-based 13th District.
He selected Rapid City historian Eric Abrahamson as his running mate, but was overwhelmingly defeated in the general election by incumbent Republican governor Mike Rounds.