Minnehaha County Commissioners finally appear ready to address some fundamental operational shortcomings in the structure of our county government. They are considering putting a home rule charter on the ballot for voters to consider in November.

The State’s Model for County Operations Doesn’t Fit Larger Counties

South Dakota’s statutes include numerous detailed rules on how counties should operate. It’s a one size fits all model. But those rules don’t always seem appropriate in a county containing roughly a fourth of the state’s population. That is why the state’s Constitution gives local governments the ability to adopt home rule charters to provide more local control. Counties have the freedom to operate in ways that make sense for their unique circumstances.

Electing Department Heads Who Supervise Staff Makes No Sense

Minnehaha County is currently required by state law to fill many department head positions by election. But that approach doesn’t always work well in larger counties with numerous employees in each department. Voters are not well-positioned to discern who would be best qualified to perform technical supervisory jobs like treasurer, register of deeds or auditor.

Instead, department heads who supervise staff should generally be hired based on their education, training and experience. Political connections should not matter. The exceptions many feel make sense are the offices of sheriff and state’s attorney. In those cases, politics necessarily are involved.

By contrast, the county commission appoints or hires the county administrator, the director of equalization and the director of human resources. That approach makes more sense when filling department head positions. A home rule charter would allow it to be extended to cover even more of them.

Home Rule Governments Work Well in South Dakota

Home rule charters have been successfully adopted in Sioux Falls, Aberdeen, Brookings, Watertown, Pierre and five other South Dakota cities. Some counties too. The city of Sioux Falls has thrived under the home rule government adopted by voters in 1994.

Voters got rid of a system where city commissioners were elected to fill supervisory and management positions, just like in our county government today. That approach did not work well. Underqualified people ran and were sometimes elected.

The county tried to adopt a home rule charter a couple decades ago. But the proposal reportedly failed because it wasn’t energetically promoted by county leaders or the business community. It’s time to try again.

National Civic League’s Model County Charter

National Civic League’s Model County Charter

The county commission has the authority to approve a charter and put it on the ballot for voters to consider. Using the National Civic League’s model home rule charter as the starting point, they could basically duplicate how things now operate, except that voters would fill fewer elected positions. That reduction would likely be the county’s main initial benefit, but they will probably also eventually find other efficiencies from increased local control.

Time for County Leaders to Act

While Sioux Falls city government is well-funded, Minnehaha County has struggled to make ends meet. Minnehaha County commissioners work hard to adequately fund many of the county’s important functions. So, for years I and others have suggested that they adopt a home rule charter to improve the efficiency of operations. I am pleased that the time may now be right for the county commission to put a home rule charter on the November ballot.