James River water district withdrawal on the ballot

Talk about it

Approximately five years ago, the west half of Miner County was annexed into the James River Water Development District. This year, some residents of eight townships in Miner County want out of the district.

Auditor Susan Connor said residents from those townships brought a concern to the Miner County Commission that they were paying taxes to the JRWDD but weren’t getting any projects approved.

“They were asking the commission to pass a resolution to petition the state water board to allow them to be removed from the water district,” Connor said.

The commission passed the resolution and the state Board of Water and Natural Resources approved the question to be on Tuesday’s ballot.

A “yes” vote means the voter is in favor of the withdrawal. A “no” vote means the voter is against the withdrawal.

The Miner County issue is one of a number of local-level ballot questions and races that will be decided Tuesday in The Daily Republic’s print circulation area.

Chamberlain bond issue

In the Chamberlain School District, which includes Lyman, Brule and Buffalo counties, voters will decide whether a $5.28 million bond will be issued to help fund a $13.18 million events and fine arts center project at the Chamberlain school. The proposed 53,000-square-foot center would be attached to the east side of the school.

A “yes” vote gives the school district the authority to finance bonds up to $5.28 million. A “no” vote means the voter is against the district issuing bonds.

Hanson County wheel tax

The Hanson County Commission adopted an ordinance in April to impose a wheel tax in the county to help pay for road maintenance and improvements.

After opposition arose, the commission placed the issue on the ballot to let the voters decide, said Lesa Trabing, county auditor.

A “yes” vote will impose the wheel tax. A “no” vote will reject the ordinance and no wheel tax would be imposed.

The tax would be $2 per wheel, not to exceed $8 per vehicle, and it would apply to all vehicles, including trailers. Hanson County had 9,334 vehicles licensed in 2011, some of which were two-wheeled trailers. The treasurer estimated that should the ordinance pass, the wheel tax would bring in about $75,000 per year.

Other items

• Lyman County voters will have two local races and a portion of the county’s voters will have one ballot question to decide. Four men are running for two atlarge seats on the county commission. David Reis and incumbent Eugene Mertens are Democrats and Adam Ehlers and incumbent Leroy Choal are Republicans. Reis, 55, of Oacoma, is a farmer and rancher. Mertens, 63, is a farmer in the Kennebec area. Ehlers, 34, of Presho, is a farmer. Choal, 56, of Reliance, works for a construction company.

Voters will also choose a state’s attorney between incumbent Anita L. Fuoss and Paul E. Jensen. Fuoss, 51, of Murdo, is an independent and currently serves as the state’s attorney for Lyman County and Jones County, and operates Fuoss Law Office and Jones County Title Company in Murdo. Jensen, 58, of Winner, is also an independent and runs a private law firm in Winner.

• Charles Mix County voters will choose between incumbent Pamela S. Hein and Thomas J. Deadrick for state’s attorney. Hein, 52, Lake Andes, is a Democrat, currently serves as the county’s state’s attorney and operates Hein Law Office in Lake Andes. Deadrick, 60, Platte, is a Republican and operates Deadrick Law Office P.C. in Platte.

• Brule County voters will select a state’s attorney from David V. Natvig and Theresa M. Maule. Natvig, 47, Kimball, is a Republican and currently serves at the county’s state’s attorney and operates his own firm in Kimball. Maule, 46, Chamberlain, is an independent and operates Theresa Maule Law Office in Chamberlain.

• Buffalo County voters will choose between incumbent Steve Fox and Dedrich (Deach) Koch for the county’s state’s attorney. Fox, 59, Chamberlain, is a Republican and currently serves as Buffalo County’s state’s attorney and runs his own law firm in Chamberlain. Koch, 53, Gann Valley, is an independent and runs a private law practice.

• Sanborn County voters will choose a commissioner for District 2 from incumbent Keith Senska or Paul Larson. Senska, 66, Woonsocket, is a Republican and farms outside Woonsocket. Larson, 58, Woonsocket, is a Democrat and works for the Sanborn County Highway Department.

• Tripp County voters will elect a commissioner for District 4 from incumbent Greg English or Curt Littau. English, 51, of Winner, is a Democrat and ranches and farms. Littau, 45, of Carter, is a Republican and ranches and farms.

• Jones County voters will choose between Beth Feddersen and Debra J. Byrd for county treasurer. Feddersen, 38, Murdo, is a Republican and is a parttime janitor at Jones County School District. Byrd, 46, Murdo, is an independent and is the Jones County deputy treasurer.

• Gregory County voters will choose a soil conservation district director. Kay Don Jons, 57, is a farmer and rancher. Dean Kerner, 48, is a farmer and rancher.

Tags: our towns, election 2012, news, updates, region