A group wants to change how city government works. Their task just got harder.

The hurdle for getting proposed charter changes on a Sioux Falls municipal ballot just got a little higher.

Under the Sioux Falls city charter, petition circulators seeking to change the aforementioned Sioux Falls Home Rule Charter — like the "Triple Check the Charter" group — must get 5% of registered voters before an election is called. 

But a recent opinion of the Sioux Falls city attorney, requested by the city clerk's office, has put the validity of that part of the city charter in question.

City Attorney Stacy Kooistra said because the charter is less stringent than state laws relating to petition drives, the state laws win out. That means Triple Check the Charter would need signatures of 10% of registered voters in a jurisdiction. 

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"Accordingly, and because the city is required by law to follow the more stringent standard (SDCL 6-12-5), the number of signatures required shall be based on provisions set for in the State Constitution," City Clerk Tom Greco wrote in a letter sent to "Triple Check the Charter" members Friday.

Kooistra did not respond to request for comment Monday.

Triple Check the Charter, which consists of a 15-member organizational committee that includes civic watchdog Bruce Danielson, wants voters to decide the following:

• require a two-thirds affirmative vote of the city council to OK bonding proposals,
• remove the mayor from the City Council 
• and require a simple plurality standard for winning city council elections.

With Greco following the guidance of the city attorney, committees seeking to change charter will now need to collect 6,729 signatures of registered voters in Sioux Falls, about 1,500 more than previously anticipated.

The letter sent to Triple Check the Charter also specifies the committee is strictly limited in who, and the number of people, eligible to circulate petitions.

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"The City Attorney is in agreement that the language provided in Charter Section 8.01(d) limits the number of circulators to the 15 qualified voters who initiated the proceedings to amend the charter," Greco wrote. "As such, any petition circulated by an individual other than a committee member ... will be deemed invalid." 

The opinions only relate to the charter revision process. Citizen-led initiated measures and referendums still only require the 5% threshold, Greco told the Argus Leader.

Danielson told the Argus Leader he's working with legal counsel to determine the legality of the city attorney's opinions, which he called a "game-changer," and sets a precedent that all provisions of charter that deviate from state law could be invalid.  

“We have received an opinion from the city officials, who are duty bound to defend the charter, deciding they have the ability to reject sections of the charter they do not agree with," he said. “City support staff have opined new rules for our petitioning as if they have the power to rewrite state law, home rule charter and South Dakota Constitution.”

T.J. Nelson, deputy chief of staff in the mayor's office, issued a statement Monday afternoon saying Danielson's comments are predictable and "grossly misconstrued and inaccurate."

While Home Rule Charter provides city government latitude in how it operates, it "does not exempt the city from abiding by state law and the state constitution, including election and petition procedures," he said.

Both Nelson and Greco said the charter will likely need to be updated through a public vote next April as a result of the city attorney's opinion.

City Councilor Janet Brekke, who served as the City Attorney during the implementation of the charter in 1995, said she's in discussions with Kooistra to determine a method for putting the opinions into action, whether through a charter change or council action. Either way, she said the uncertainty surrounding the number of signatures needed and those eligible to gather them is harmful to the "Triple Check the Charter" efforts.

"We recognize that the dual interpretations have caused some problems with the petition process underway," Brekke said. "It’s stifling the petition drive."