Formal Objection to Violations of Open Meetings Law at the May 5, 2026 Annual Meeting
Dale Ruzicka, President
Matt Christensen, Secretary
Crystal Farrokhi, Treasurer
Saddleback Road District Board of Trustees
Date: May 19, 2026
Re: Formal Objection to Violations of Open Meetings Law at the May 5, 2026 Annual Meeting
Dear Mr. Ruzicka, Mr. Christensen, Mrs. Farrokhi
I am writing to formally object to actions taken at the Saddleback Road District Annual Meeting held on May 5, 2026.
Specifically, under Agenda Item G. Resource and Revenue generation methods – Secretary, the board engaged in substantive discussion regarding:
- Rising costs of contracted materials (gravel) and machine rates
- Reduction in frequency of maintenance and gravel top coating to “stretch” annual budgets
- Plans to set the Road District Levy for the 2027 operating year
None of these topics were listed on the publicly posted agenda. The agenda was narrowly limited to “Resource and Revenue generation methods.” Discussing budget reductions, maintenance levels, and future levy setting goes well beyond the scope of the noticed agenda item.
This violates the South Dakota Open Meetings Law (SDCL 1-25-1), which requires public bodies to provide reasonable notice of the matters to be considered. The public is entitled to know in advance what subjects will be discussed, particularly when they involve financial decisions affecting all landowners.
This is especially concerning given that the Saddleback Road District was already publicly reprimanded by the Open Meetings Commission for previous violations of the same law. Continuing this pattern raises serious questions about compliance and transparency.
I request that:
- The meeting minutes be corrected to accurately reflect that these topics were discussed outside the posted agenda.
- Future agendas be drafted with sufficient specificity so that landowners can reasonably know what will be discussed.
- The board take steps to ensure full compliance with SDCL Chapter 1-25 going forward.
I will retain a copy of this letter for my records.
Sincerely,
District Member