Alcester Union & Hudsonite Online

PIERRE (CNS) - The Senate approved two open government-related bills on Jan. 29. One would open the door for the use of cameras in courtrooms and the other would amend the state's open meetings laws.

Senate Bill 77 would repeal the statutory language banning cameras and recording devices from courtroom proceedings. The bill passed, 32-2. Sen. David Knudson, R-Sioux Falls, is the bill's prime sponsor. “This measure would enable us to leave that decision in the hands of the Unified Judicial System.”

Knudson said that while the bill would not force judges to allow cameras and recording devices into their courtrooms, he feels it serves as an endorsement for the practice.

On the open meetings law, the Senate approved Senate Bill 199, which would allow two public boards to meet with only one of the two boards having to abide by the open meetings law. It passed, 22-12.

Sen. Jim Peterson, D-Revillo, said this bill stems from an incident in his district involving a township board and a county commission. The township board was reprimanded by the Open Meetings Commission for failing to post a meeting notice before meeting with the county board.

“They in no way were taking any action,” Peterson said. “I feel the law should be changed.”

Proponents of this measure say it is a “common sense” bill, but that is not necessarily true, said David Bordewyk, general manager of the South Dakota Newspaper Association, in testimony before the Senate Local Government Committee on Monday.

Bordewyk said serious problems could arise from the seemingly harmless bill.

He said, “If two school boards are going to meet and discuss consolidation issues, only one board would have to provide public notice of the meeting, and that isn't right. The patrons or news media of one of the school districts would not be required to notify anybody of the joint meeting.”

Bordewyk said that is just one of many problems that could arise from this legislation.

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