I’m posting this just out of curiosity, I don’t know the answer, nor do I think I am anywhere near being an expert on city code, but someone pointed this out to me today in reference to the Dan Daily case and the SD Supreme Court ruling;
• Code 2-66 prevents appeals, Defendant or City.
• The city can request compliance but have no way to enforce it.
• The city must allow appeals before they can broker events center bonds.
• Brokerages likely will not sponsor bonds unless they have legal recourse in case of default.
Like I said, don’t know if this is true. But it will be interesting to see the negotiations when those bonds become available.
One thing you could add is that the city has ignored Daily vs. City Supreme Court directives. They did minor code language revision just to state they are working on it. However, policy is the same. What needs to happen is court supervision for state civil procedures compliance.
They’ve stopped court proceedings. Any good defense lawyer would show they’ve not complied. If their civil actions are unconstitutional, they automatically lose. They have no lien authority and no way to collect fees or fines without the courts.
Huether doesn’t want to allow appeals. It’s what gives him power without legal repercussions. Lawsuits would stop lucrative side payment contracts. If it’s a public project without competitive bid process, excluded bidders could sue and expose their syndicate.
The county collects property taxes. The state collects sales taxes. The city gets a distribution that is +/- $330 million per year. If the county and/or state withheld, the city has no recovery method. Per city code, plaintiff and/or defendant is/are denied access to the courts. Probably the best way to restore democracy is to cut off their funding.
In short, yes, the bonds will sell. 2-66 isn’t applicable. Bond sales are governed by SDCL 8-6B and related. It’s common for people to confuse bond issuance with the many instances “bonds” are required in administrative or court process. The later are surety instrument (CNA Surety’s business): very, very different from the incurring of debt via the bond issuance process.
Regardless of anyone’s thoughts on the merits of the civic center, we will hit the lowest point in history for bond rates, so, our timing is good in that regard.
Oops, sorry: typo’d. SDCL 6-8B
Thanks for clarifying.
Maybe on SDCL 6-8B. A trial would be complicated. Sorting out federal, state, county, and city jurisdiction is complicated but necessary. Home Rule Charter has made the city an independent nation something like indian reservations. When Huether floats bonds and bankrupts the city, perhaps some form of RICO law could be deployed to discover where he’s hidden kickbacks. A federal tax audit would be interesting.
Maybe before they issue the bonds, you should go to the city council and ask them some of these questions. I think the public has the right to know what we CAN and CANNOT do.