SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – As we inch closer to another hotly contested general election, it’s important to know that those who work our elections and those voting are following the rules.

Shortly after the June 4 primaries, absentee ballots were challenged at two precincts in Minnehaha County, one of the precincts had 132 ballots thrown out which were later added back, but didn’t change the result of any election after a recount.

The ACLU chapter of South Dakota is now looking to expand their ability to ensure cases like this aren’t necessary.

For the first time, the ACLU Chapter of South Dakota is bringing in volunteers to be a part of an “Election Protection Team” as Election Observers.

These observers will monitor polling places to ensure there is no voter suppression, make suggestions to improve future elections and ensure all voters know their rights.

“If an individual were to come to a polling location and they believe all absentee ballots should be discarded, that would be an unlawful challenge and we would want to make sure our Election Observers are taking notes and letting us know right away,” SD ACLU Advocacy Manager Samantha Chapman said.

Training will take place next week, first in Aberdeen on the 20th and then in Sioux Falls on the 21st. Chapman says she’s excited to get these communities involved.

“We see this as a great opportunity to connect with folks in these communities to reinforce voting rights for the people who live there and again to have a strong presence to make sure that all votes are counted and heard on election day,” Champman said.

If you’re interested in being a volunteer, you can register here: https://www.aclusd.org/electionprotection.

Absentee voting begins September 20th. The voter registration deadline is October 21st.

Chapman says the group has learned a lot from the North Dakota chapter in the 2022 Midterm Elections, including suggestions left by the chapter to county officials on how to improve the election process in the future.

Copyright 2024 Dakota News Now. All rights reserved.

DENVER (KDVR) — A welfare check on Monday morning turned into an ongoing investigation by the Ault Police Department after a girl told the agency she had been left in the town after being taken without her consent from South Dakota.

It all started for police at about 8:30 a.m. on Monday. An officer was dispatched to conduct a welfare check just north of town on U.S. 85, according to a press release from the Ault Police Department. A girl told the officer that she had been taken from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, by two males and left in Ault.

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The girl told police the pair left her behind after an argument in a parking lot located in the 200 block of U.S. 85 in Ault. She said during the argument, one of the males pointed an AR-15-style rifle at her head and assaulted her with it.

She told officers that her juvenile friend was still being held by the males, whose ages were not immediately released by police. Police investigators learned the vehicle traveled to Fort Collins after the Ault incident.

A multi-state investigation was launched to locate the second juvenile, who was thought to still be with the reportedly armed and dangerous suspects. With help from the Nebraska State Police, both suspects were located along with the second juvenile within five hours of the nationwide search initiation.

Both suspects were taken into custody in Nebraska on multiple charges. The Ault Police Department filed arrest warrants for crimes committed within the Weld County jurisdiction.

Ault police are looking for more information related to this case. Anyone who saw a red Volkswagen Beetle with a tan convertible top in Ault between the hours of 8:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. on Aug. 11, witnessed any of the incidents described above or saw the vehicle anywhere else within Northern Colorado is asked to contact Detective Sergeant Shippy.

The car pictured above is not the suspect vehicle but is similar. The suspect vehicle has a South Dakota license plate of 44MSB4.

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Anyone with information and who has not spoken with detectives on this incident or anyone in the area who may have security camera footage of the incident is asked to call the Weld County Regional Communications Center at 970-356-1212 and request to speak with Ault Detective Sergeant Shippy.

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The state property tax assessment committee is continuing discussions on the impact of taxes on South Dakota homeowners.

South Dakota’s property tax structure is under constant scrutiny, from homeowners and lawmakers.

The state’s Study Committee on Property Tax Assessment Methodology met Tuesday to discuss the issues.

While conceding property taxes “stink”, Matt Krogman with the state Retailors Association said we could be in the middle of a change.

“We believe there is a shift happening, everybody worries about a shift when we talk about property taxes,” Krogman said. “We believe we’re in the middle of a shift right now, and the shift is going on the backs of owner-occupied properties. We believe that if something isn’t done to make a change, it’s just going to continue to get worse.”

Krogman said more of the burden is shifting from profit-producing farmland to homeowners.

“In 2017, this showed ag land paying 28.12% of total property taxes collected, and owner-occupied was paying 38.126%, so there was about a 10% gap of who was paying between ag and owner-occupied properties,” Krogman said. “Go seven years down the road to 2023, and ag was paying 22.08% of all property taxes collected, and owner-occupied was paying 42.78%.”

While some of that can be attributed to things like ag land being sold for housing developments, he said it’s a gap that could get wider. Ultimately, Krogman said it comes down to how the state values land.

“If commercial and residential owner-occupied are based on market, we know that market while every once in a while, might experience a downturn, that market is going to continue to increase,” Krogman said. “If we’re based on productivity, if I have 100 acres, I’m producing on that 100 acres is going to stay there no matter what the market value is. So, we’re going to continue to see commercial and owner-occupied paying more of what’s being collected.”

Krogman said moving into the next legislative session, lawmakers should listen to the voices of homeowners when considering taxation.