READER SUBMISSION: The “Hire a Lawyer” Runaround in Custer County
I read your recent post about the “Unlimited Taxing Trap,” and I wanted to reach out because you hit the nail on the head. For those of us living in Custer County, this isn’t a hypothetical theory—it is our daily reality.
We are watching a complete collapse of accountability, and it’s happening with the full knowledge of our county officials.
The “Fee” Epidemic
In Custer County, the “Special Maintenance Fee” has become the weapon of choice for road districts. As the previous article pointed out, SDCL 31-12A is very clear about using levies and assessments, but our local boards have realized they can just call it a “fee” and skip the legal oversight.
What’s worse is that our County Auditor is apparently allowing this to happen across dozens of districts. Instead of acting as a gatekeeper for the taxpayers, the Auditor’s office seems to be acting as the collection agency for these unauthorized charges. Millions of dollars are being funneled through a system that has no basis in state law, and the county is just waving it through.
The State’s Attorney’s Deaf Ear
Many of us have taken our proof—statutes in hand—to the State’s Attorney. We’ve shown her the law, we’ve shown her the illegal “bylaws” these boards use to justify themselves, and we’ve shown her the Attorney General’s opinions that support us.
The response is always the same: A shrug and a dismissal. We’ve been told that because these districts have been breaking the law for so long, it’s now “accepted procedure.” Imagine if a regular citizen tried that excuse for a speeding ticket or tax evasion.
The “Hire a Lawyer” Trap
The most insulting part of this “closed loop” is when the very officials who are paid by our taxes to uphold the law tell us to “just hire a private lawyer.”
Think about the absurdity of that:
- The board takes our money unlawfully.
- The board uses our money to hire an expensive attorney to fight us.
- The State’s Attorney and Auditor tell us that if we want the law followed, we have to spend our own life savings on a private lawsuit to make the government do what it’s already supposed to do.
They know that most people cannot afford a $20,000 legal battle against a board that has an unlimited budget funded by the taxpayers themselves. It is a war of attrition designed to make us give up and just pay the “fee” so we don’t lose our homes.
A Call for Statewide Eyes
If you live in a special district in Custer County, you need to look at your tax bill. If you see a “Maintenance Fee” instead of a “Levy,” you are likely part of this unauthorized system.
It is time to stop treating this as a “neighbor dispute” and start calling it what it is: Systemic, county-sanctioned tax reform by bypass. If the State’s Attorney won’t read the law, and the Auditor won’t enforce the law, then it’s time for the State of South Dakota to step in and audit Custer County.
— A Concerned Custer County Taxpayer