July 22, 1986

Mr. Roger Tellinghuisen 
State's Attorney 
78-80 Sherman Street 
Lawrence County Courthouse 
Deadwood, South Dakota 57732

OFFICIAL OPINION NO. 86-27

Open meeting law

Dear Mr. Tellinghuisen:

You have requested an official opinion concerning the following factual situation:

FACTS: 

A task force has been appointed by the Lawrence County Commissioners to study the issue of mining and to make recommendations to the board as to the policies and controls performed by the county.  The members of the task force receive no compensation nor other funding of their participation.  The task force does not have authority to enact any ordinances or regulations, but serves merely in an advisory capacity to the Lawrence County Commission.

Regarding these facts, you have asked the following question:

QUESTION: 

How does the South Dakota open meeting law (SDCL 1-25) apply to the meetings of this task force and is it necessary that these meetings be open and accessible to the public?

In response to your question, I would direct your attention to SDCL 1-25-1, which states as follows: 

Except as otherwise provided by law, the official meetings of the state and the political subdivisions thereof, including all related boards, commissions and other agencies, and the official meetings of boards, commissions and  agencies created by statute or which are non-taxpaying and derive a source of revenue directly from public funds, shall be open to the public, except as provided in this chapter.  A violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor.

SDCL 7-8-16 also applies to this issue; it states: 

The board of county commissioners shall hold its sessions as an open meeting and transact all business in a public manner and if the county has no courthouse or the courthouse is unfit or inconvenient, it may hold its sessions at any other suitable place at the county seat.  Joint county- municipal planning sessions may be held at any suitable location within the county.  All matters pertaining to the interests of the county shall be heard by the board in session only, but it may continue any business from any regular session to an intermediate day.

It is my opinion that SDCL 1-25-1 does not apply to the meetings of the task force you describe; this is based on the fact that the task force is not a political subdivision, board, commission, or agency of the state which is '. . . created by statute or . . . non-taxpaying and deriv(ing) a source of revenue directly from public funds.  . . .' Since it is not a political subdivision or state agency, the task force does not have 'official meetings' to which SDCL 1-25-1 would apply.

However, it is also my opinion that the presentation of the findings and  advice of the task force to the Lawrence County Commission must be performed at an open meeting pursuant to SDCL 7-18-16.

Respectfully submitted,

Mark V. Meierhenry
Attorney General