Contact:
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Elaine Wulff, Auditor
PO Box 146
Gann Valley, SD 57341
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Phone: (605) 293-3217
Fax: (605) 293-3240
Email: Elaine.Wulff@state.sd.us
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County Financial Officer and Local Election Supervisor - The county Auditor is responsible
for elections, county financial reports, and preservation and destruction of county records.
ELECTIONS: Prior to any election, the county auditor is responsible for notifying the public of up-
coming special or general elections. In addition to this, the auditor is responsible for the
ordering and printing of ballots, setting up voting machines, and hiring election workers. The
auditor is responsible for supervising the election and making sure the election workers have
attended an election workshop. Election workshops are supervised by the Secretary of State.
Before any person can vote in a South Dakota election, they must first be registered to vote.
The county auditor can provide this service for you, as well as helping you with absentee voting.
KEEPER OF RECORDS: The auditor is the keeper of county records and acts as the
bookkeeper for county business. Records may include documents, books, county highway
maps, or minutes from county commission meetings. The auditor is responsible for
scheduling county commission meetings, preparing the agenda, follows up on commission
decisions through letters and memoranda, and prepares the county budget. It is the auditor’s
responsibility to audit bills or other claims against the county and prepare the warrants in
payment of these bills. This responsibility is not a light one, for the auditor must be certain
that all payments are accurate, and that all services for payment have actually been provided to
the county office named. A main aspect of the auditor's function is to maintain each county
office budget, and to insure that each office expenditure is provided for in the county budget.
South Dakota state law requires that prior to spending any county money on a given project,
the county must have budgeted for it, and must have the necessary funds to pay for the
project. This means that no office can spend money, without budget authority and sufficient
dollars to pay for the project.
The primary source of county revenue is through property taxes. However, only about 20% of
all property taxes go to fund county government, while the remaining 80% is used to fund
schools. It is the auditor's responsibility to figure real estate and mobile home taxes. It
should be noted that the auditor does not appraise property value, but rather figures the
property appraisal into a tax levy, which is forwarded to the county treasurer for collection.
INDIGENT MEDICAL CLAIMS: Part of the county's responsibility is to provide for the needy, and
the auditor generally handles indigent health care. Or rather, administering payment for
medical services provided to people unable to pay for their treatment.
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