South DaCola

Were the City Council candidates financial documents filed correctly?

l3wis l3wis

I guess that would be a matter of law, and which laws you decide to follow. We noticed last week that after the reports were not filed by Friday at 5 PM that on Monday that the clerk’s office was modifying (auditing) the original financial documents.

Nothing wrong with auditing and amending the original, but they should never be audited on the original document, they should be posted right after being received in original format (Wed at 5 PM), and amendments can be made and posted later.

The city clerk’s office has a different opinion on the matter.

I wasn’t going to post these emails, but since Pitty Patt Powwers decided to only show one side of the emails, I would show both.

From Bruce;

 

Tom Greco & Lorie Hogstad
Clerks of the City of Sioux Falls, SD
Inconsistencies have come to my attention as I look at the 2016 filed financial disclosure forms. Please supply me with copies of all submitted financial and organizational forms with certificate of actual date of submission and acceptance of each document for all candidates and PACs. Our understanding each of the 2016 candidates filed the required forms by the deadlines required. Based on your comments to me, there are no candidate filing issues, so this request is directed to the actions of your office.
Your verbal statements made to me during my Monday April 11, 2016 visit to your Carnegie office confirms your standing policy of intentionally mis-dating (both back dating and post dating) these forms.
These are legal documents and must never be tampered with. The documents must be treated as whole when they are submitted and have no other markings attached but for a standard date received stamp or mark.
As stated during my visit to your office, these documents are legal documents filed in trust to your office. These forms are submitted to your office similar to forms filed with the Clerks of the US Federal and State Courts in South Dakota. The originals submitted to these Clerks are never withdrawn and only amended when corrections are be submitted. This is the law.
The delay in the document posting was inexcusible but to break your oath to the people of Sioux Falls by falsifing the dates must be investigated. It raises reasonable doubt about the authenticity of all documents either received or issued by your office.
Last year the City of Sioux Falls sold property at 801 North Phillips Ave. Sale document errors were reported to the City Council and City Attorney by me, stating these documents were privately modified after City Council adoption. The final documents were modified after passage without City Council approval. The title to the real estate in question has been clouded by having document dates not matching the actual dates of the events. The Notary Public stamp was even expired when using the original document dates voted on. Clearly now it appears your office is keeping documents not reflecting events. Are these illegal documents and in reality nullify the sale?
Now we have the use of correction fluids or writing over document sections without the preservation of originals. This shows a strong disregard for your oaths to do no harm.
We will continue our efforts. You have done a diservice to the citizens of Sioux Falls and especially the great candidates who ran for office this year.
As stated in the below attached request, it appears the City Clerk office of the City of Sioux Falls may violated South Dakota law and practice.
We also require written answers to the following:
  1. Why the originally filed early or on-time documents not timely posted to the City Clerk’s website as usual?
  2. Why filing dates were not correctly presented?
  3. Why were document dates back dated or post dated?
  4. Why you allowed original documents to be altered?
  5. Why you did not follow state law concerning the proper 72 hour submission of amended data procedures?
I expect to receive these documents with your answers by return email or USPS mail.
Bruce Danielson
Citizens for Integrity
PO Box 1954
Sioux Falls, SD 57101
City Clerk Tom Greco’s 1 AM response;

Mr. Danielson,

Tending to my sick child has kept me up this late, so I’ll make my response very direct so I can get back to him.

Your claims below are baseless and deceitful. Your characterization of the conversation you, myself, Lorie, and two other employees witnessed is entirely wrong.

There was no delay in posting disclosures to the web. In fact, we have no obligation to post to the internet but do so as a convenience to citizens, which we obviously support.

No documents have been “tampered with” by this office. I am not even sure what you mean by your assertion, but the documents posted to the web and in our office are accurate.

I am not sure what xxx N Phillips Ave has to do with your request.

I don’t need a lecture from you about oaths. I’ve taken an oath to this country and its laws; I’ve upheld that oath through two war campaigns and over 20 years of service to our country.

You probably need sleep more than I do. Get it. When you wake up get your facts straight (a spell checker will also help.)

Thomas Greco
SIOUX FALLS CITY CLERK

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