Resident challenges county treasurer over tax-certificate redemptions; treasurer cites state law
Summary
A member of the public alleged Pennington County treasurer was adding current-year taxes to tax-certificate redemptions; Treasurer Annette Brandt said state law treats taxes as due Jan. 1 and, when third parties hold certificates, full-year redemption is permitted under SDCL provisions.
At the Jan. 6 Pennington County commission meeting, a member of the public raised a complaint alleging the county treasurer's office was selling tax certificates for the current tax year and adding current-year taxes to the redemption amount, effectively asking property owners to pay taxes not yet due.
The complainant said the county's practice deprived taxpayers of rights because April and October installments are not yet due. Pennington County Treasurer Annette Brandt responded in detail, citing South Dakota codified law and explaining the county's statutory interpretation: taxes are assessed in arrears and considered due Jan. 1 of the year following the levy (SDCL 10-21-4 as read aloud), and SDCL 10-20-1947 and related sections enable the county to require full-year redemption if a third party owns a tax certificate. Brandt said county-held certificates are treated differently: when the county holds the certificate, the treasurer generally requests only the first-half payment to clear a county-held certificate.
Commissioners acknowledged the legal complexity and said they would follow up; no immediate formal policy change was adopted at the meeting. Public speakers and at least one commissioner characterized the practice as potentially unfair and asked staff to provide clarity in writing to assure taxpayers of their rights.
The exchange clarified statutory language that the treasurer relied on but left unresolved broader policy questions about whether county procedures should change to avoid placing the full year's burden on property owners redeeming tax certificates when third parties are involved.
