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The following seems rather obvious to many of us, but apparently was not obvious to the Apple Dumpling Gang. You may recall they told the Open Meeting Commission that they thought this would be easy and that they knew nothing about the requirements to follow the law. So, I thought I’d share this for the…

In South Dakota, county road districts, like many local government bodies, are entrusted with managing public resources and making decisions that affect our communities. As residents, we rely on these boards to operate with integrity and openness. One key indicator of a board’s commitment to transparency is how it handles public comment during meetings. While…

As previously stated, one solution for this road district is to replace the Apple Dumpling Gang with honest and honorable people. That’s assuming there are any in the district. We did have a reasonable candidate last year, but somehow she did not win. <shocker> Something to keep in mind is that it will take a…

Months had passed since the Open Meetings Commission hearing in Pierre, where the commissioners had laid down the law like a fresh layer of asphalt. The Willow Creek Road District trustees—Harlan “Harley” Whitaker, Vernon “Vern” Pritchard, and Lyle “Ledger” Swanson—had made the changes, albeit with the enthusiasm of a mule pulling a plow uphill. Emails…

Trustees might invent several ridiculous reasons to justify vague agendas, often rooted in an attempt to control the flow of information or avoid confrontation. The humor often lies in how easily these flimsy excuses unravel under scrutiny. Examples of such invented reasons include:

As you may recall, I’ve discussed Anti-SLAPP laws and how South Dakota would benefit. SLAPP stands for Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation. It refers to lawsuits intended to intimidate or silence critics by burdening them with legal costs. Even if you are speaking the truth, as we have been since the beginning, and a defense…

This is advice for people just starting out. Much of it no longer applies to us, because we’ve already done it, or tried to do it, or the crooked board, AKA The Apple Dumpling Gang, literally wrote bylaws that are clearly an attempt to keep us from holding office. In addition, as regular citizens, we…

In the wide, wind-swept corner of western South Dakota where the horizon never quite meets the sky, the Willow Creek Road District kept three miles of gravel and two stubborn cul-de-sacs from turning entirely back into prairie. The district was overseen by three trustees who had held their seats longer than most local pickup trucks…

This story takes place several months before the Open Meetings Commission hearing that eventually forced real changes. It is one of the many complaints Marla Voss filed over time—complaints that piled up quietly, like gravel in a low spot, until they finally triggered official scrutiny much later. In the wide, wind-swept corner of western South…

The two remaining apple dumplings are finally appointing a third dumpling. I’d like to say ‘trustee’ or just ‘member’… but since they are appointing this person, I think it is a safe bet they are not picking somebody who has a difference of opinion or anything to bring to the table. THAT would be a…