[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbsbfIGryKA[/youtube]
Our Cameraman Bruce went to Pierre on February 18, 2016 to testify before the SD House Local Government Committee on three bills. This video is the first of three videos to show how the process works for other citizens wishing to present their testimonies to a legislative committee.
The three bills, HB 1194, HB 1195 and HB 1196 were placed in the hopper by District 15 Rep Patrick Kirschman to three of the many loopholes Home Rule Charter communities are allowed to push their weight around.
Sioux Falls with its over staffed City Attorney’s office and compliant City Council has become a trendsetter in abusing citizen rights. We have to close the doors to legalized citizen rights abuse through the poorly written Home Rule Charter. The individuals who put the Home Rule Charter on the 1994 ballot believed in the better values of the leaders so many guarantees we now need were never included.
When this legislation did not make it out of committee Bruce was disappointed but not defeated. This was his first legislative testimony since 1973, this experience has given new energy to how to fix many of the systemic abuses we have been uncovering.
I witnessed the event in person. What amazed me is how many times Home Rule faults were mentioned. The city charter is not democracy. It denies citizens due process and authorizes sovereignty. The mayor and his private city attorney rule unencumbered and exempt from state and federal constitutions. I don’t like the idea of living in the states 8th Indian reservation without ACLU attention.
Kudos to Bruce Danielson. A private citizen proved there’s freedom in this state and they’ll listen. It’ll take more polish to bring Sioux Falls back into constitutional conformance. There’s been major corruption, public funds fraud, and racketeering resulting from the impact of a few in expensive suits. The city must take bankruptcy to recover. I’m hoping guilty parties have their assets seized and they do years in federal prison.