I've run for the local school board more than once. I've lost more than once. And I've been told more than once by more than one person that I should run for a different office, like county commission.
I'm not announcing anything—the future remains a murky mistress—but if ever I needed a reason to run for county commission, South Dakota Codified Law 7-18-12 is it:
The board of county commissioners may promote industrial, tourist, and recreational activities and make payment from the general fund to nonprofit corporations or associations engaged in promotion either within or outside of the boundaries of the county. Any nonprofit corporation or association which accepts funds from a board of county commissioners, shall file an annual report of all receipts and expenditures with the county auditor not later than December thirty-first of each year. All books and records of the nonprofit corporation or association may be inspected by any member of the board of county commissioners, or by any agent or attorney representing the board, for any proper purpose at any reasonable time.
Translation: if the Lake County Commission gives the Lake Area Improvement Corporation any money, any commissioner can look at any books and records the LAIC keeps. I assume this would include the vaunted LAIC housing study, which executive director Dwaine Chapel will charge common folk $250 to look at. This would definitely include the LAIC budget, which Madison City Commissioner Nick Abraham quite sensibly asked to get a look at last summer as the LAIC requested its $240,000 subsidy from us taxpayers.
Hey, wait a minute: should Commissioner Abraham even have to ask? Isn't there a statute that gives him and other city commissioners the same oversight county commissioners get from SDCL 7-18-12?
Not quite. If I'm reading statute correctly (what, doesn't everyone read state statutes over breakfast?), SDCL 9-12-11 is the comparable statute authorizing municipal governments to give tax dollars to nonprofit organizations to promote their towns. However, the language isn't quite as strong:
A municipality may appropriate money from its general fund to promote itself. If there are commercial clubs, chambers of commerce, or industrial development corporations organized and incorporated as nonprofit corporations under the laws of the State of South Dakota for the purpose of promoting the municipality, the appropriations or any part thereof may be paid to such organizations for expenses incurred for promoting the municipality. Payments to these organizations shall be based on programs previously submitted to the governing board by them and they shall be required to maintain complete records on all their activities and shall provide a certified audit of those records to the governing board of the municipality at the close of each fiscal period. In lieu of a certified audit, the governing board may accept a financial statement.
The city commission apparently can look at an audit or a financial statement, but that magical phrase "all books and records" isn't there. Darn, Nick!
So I wonder how long it will take Mr. Chapel's friend and predecessor Senator Olson to write a bill for next year's session to amend the county oversight powers down to look more like the weaker city oversight powers?