RAPID CITY, S.D. – A group looking to put the Rapid City Vision Fund changes to a public vote has fallen short to get the required signatures.
Finance Director Daniel Ainslie and City Attorney Joel Landeen held a news conference Monday to address the ballot attempt. They say the group Liberty and Justice For All turned in 266 petitions.
Those petitions contained 2,975 signatures but only 2,496 could be validated, 211 short of the required number. As a result the new vision fund ordinance is now effective immediately.
While the ordinance provides the council with flexibility in the Vision Fund process ,it does not affect how funds can be spent.
Ainslie says, “The new ordinance continues the requirement that it not be used for just general ongoing operations of the city. And so that is not that’s not additional flexibility that the council has. This is truly meant to be for unique projects and and programs that would occur not for general operations of the city.”
Some of the petition signatures were invalid due to those people not being registered to vote in Rapid City or there were duplicates. This was the last opportunity to put the Vision Fund changes to a public vote.
