Court Opinion

ID: 9696909
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 19:01:23.226408+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:20:27.595541
License: Public Domain

BIEGELMEIER, J.
(dissenting). I agree the judgments appealed from should be reversed for the reason stated in Judge HANSON'S dissenting opinion, that is, the County Board had authority to reconsider its resolution before any other steps had been taken to implement it and further, accepting the guide for review in the majority opinion the County Board's first resolution approving the reorganization as to 12 of the 26 districts voting in favor of the plan was such an abuse of discretion as to be reviewable by the court.
Merely crowding more students into unsatisfactory quarters is no improvement and does not meet the legislative intent or the standards of a better school, which is the goal of the reorganization program. I believe the pupils and patrons of this area are entitled to better school facilities than those in the Board's presently approved plan and one that will meet their own and state standards. The County Board's consulting experts on education contemplated and prepared, and the Board after much study and discussion adopted, plans and standards of reorganization of its *211school districts in accord with state law. See SDC 1960 Supp. 15.2007(3) as to taxable property requirements. The Board had set up a minimum of a $5 million tax basis. The voters voted on an approved $6.7 million tax basis; they are getting about half of that. I cannot but feel that the proposed district is not feasible, i. e., capable of being utilized successfully in accord with state standards and the Board abused its discretion in approving this small district.
This court in Thies v. Renner, 78 S.D. 617, 106 N.W.2d 253, refused injunctive relief in a school reorganization dispute because a right of review existed under the provisions of SDC 1960 Supp. 15.2023 and here repeats that pronouncement. That same SDC 1960 Supp. 15.2023 and another section SDC 1960 Supp. 15.2344, both cited in the majority opinion remain in the Code, but the scope of review has now been further limited in effect to be of no practical efficacy in school reorganization proceedings.