I found this on the city council agenda (Item #6, approval of contracts-Please note, with the change in format on the new city website there is NO direct hyperlink to the meetings, you have to scroll all the way to the bottom of the page and click on the specific meeting, I figured they were going to find a way to kill the direct hyperlinks with the new site, and they did);
What is an Implied Trust?
a type of trust (= a legal arrangement in which someone is given control over another person’s money or property) that a court decides it was someone’s intention to create, although it was not clearly stated
I don’t have a clue why the city is hiring outside counsel to research this, but I have a sneaky suspicion it may have to do with charitable donations to the city in the form of a trust, but I’m probably way off.
Hopefully a councilor will pull the item so we can find out what this is for.
COUNCIL TO VOTE ON MAKING UNETHICAL BEHAVIOR, ETHICAL
Item #31, The proposed ordinance provides clarity to the City Council and Board of Ethics in regards to the Ethics and Conflict of Interest ordinances is sponsored by Councilor Neitzert. He plans to bring some of these changes;
(b) City council members have a civic responsibility to support good government by every available legal and ethical means, to continue to inform and educate the citizenry about the affairs and processes of city government, and to make themselves available to citizens of the city so that they may ascertain and respond to the needs of the community. In doing so, city council members may join or affiliate with civic organizations that advocate and support the principles consistent with the constitution and laws of the United States and South Dakota. In furtherance of this section, city council members may attend conferences or events affiliated with a political party, and may hold appointed or elected positions within their respective political parties, including, but not limited to, precinct officer or delegate to party conventions. (the changes are in bold italics)
I don’t take issue with the delegate position, but I am adamantly opposed to allowing councilors to go to political events affiliated with a party on the taxpayers dime. If they want to pay for it themselves, I am cool with that, but taxpayers shouldn’t foot the bill. Our city government is non-partisan for a reason. because we try to keep party politics out of city government.