Proposal for new form of county government gets icy reception at Minnehaha commission
A proposal to institute a new form of government in Minnehaha County could be on the back burner, following a Tuesday meeting where residents expressed concerns about some of the changes it could bring and some commissioners said they'd like to see a longer, in-depth discussion about the plan.
Commissioners Dean Karsky and Joe Kippley brought the idea of a home rule charter to Tuesday's meeting of the Minnehaha County Commission, where they emphasized that it was only a discussion at this time, that no vote would be taken yet and that any implementation of the plan would be put to a public vote.
But that didn't fly with several members of the public, some of whom cast the plan as solely devoted to getting rid of Minnehaha County Auditor Leah Anderson.
A briefing memo on the item said key elements of the proposed charter included "Maximizing local control consistent with the state Constitution and state statutes with a Home Rule Charter form of government" and "providing Minnehaha County with more efficient executive leadership and a proper separation of powers with the appointment of a County Manager."
But it was the third point that drove the majority of the discussion: The charter would combine the offices of auditor, register of deeds and treasurer into a "County Finance Office," which would be led by a finance officer who was appointed — not elected, as the three existing positions currently are.
Since her election in 2022, the commission and Anderson have had a strained relationship, largely based on actions she's taken around elections, including saying she wasn't sure she could trust the county's voting system.
And of the five commissioners, Kippley has been Anderson's firmest critic: calling her conduct "unprofessional" and "embarrassing," floating the idea of increasing the salary of all department heads except for her and calling her "absent" in some of her duties as auditor.
While Anderson did not speak at the meeting, Register of Deeds Amanda Halsey did. Hasley became emotional while she said that the position was "more than a job to her" and called the proposal "unnerving."
Several former city and county officials, including former Councilor Rick Kiley and former Auditor Ben Kyte, spoke at the meeting and said they were in favor of the idea of a home rule charter.
Commissioners also expressed some reservations with the proposal, with Commissioner Jean Bender saying she'd only seen the document Sunday, and that while she knew the idea of a home rule charter had been in discussion for a long time, she'd like to see any effort to institute it have a lot more discussion before a vote.
Commissioner Jen Bleyenberg agreed, saying that she'd heard concerns from Treasurer Kris Swanson about the proposal as well.
Karsky and Kippley both said they were open to a longer timeline on the discussion, but still felt it was important. Kippley said the county was currently under a "very awkward form of government," where the five part-time commissioners serve as the bosses of several employees, but it requires three of them to do so.
He concluded his comments by making a statement that seemed to get a rise from some members of the audience.
“The intent of this is to put forth efficient, professional leadership in the roles of trust in our positions of authority in our county," Kippley said. "And if you think when I’m saying we need professional, responsible leadership that I’m against your favorite person, you might be telling on yourself a little bit.”
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Proposed Minnehaha County government consolidation gets icy reception
