Codington County Wraps Up Lake Property Fieldwork, Shifts to Building Permit Assessments

Northeast Radio SD News – Watertown, SD - Appraisers in the Codington County Director of Equalization Office have completed their seasonal fieldwork at the lake and are now shifting their focus to building permits and year-end assessments, Director of Equalization Shawna Constant reported to the Codington County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026.

During her monthly update to the commission, Constant outlined several major assessment, audit, and staffing milestones currently underway in the courthouse.

Lake Assessments and Building Permits

With fieldwork at the lake now finished, county appraisers have transitioned to assessing building permits that were taken out over the past year, as well as permits that were not yet completed from the previous year.

Flooded Farmland and Five-Year Tax-Exempt Applications Completed

Office personnel have also finished accepting applications for flooded farmland and tax-exempt properties. Constant noted that 2026 marked the mandatory five-year review cycle requiring every tax-exempt property in the county—including all churches and cemeteries—to submit a full application. During the four intervening years between full cycles, the office only processes continuing applications, which represent roughly one-third of the total permits.

Department of Revenue Annual Sales Audit

A representative from the South Dakota Department of Revenue visited the Codington County Courthouse last week to begin the county’s annual sales audit. The state review examines property sales across the county to ensure the equalization office is verifying sales accurately and maintaining proper assessment ratios. The auditor will complete the remainder of the review remotely from Yankton as the county office begins its year-end procedures.

Strong Turnout for Administrative Assistant Opening

Constant also reported strong interest in the department’s open administrative assistant position, which was posted last week and has already drawn approximately 26 applications. Constant plans to review the applications and schedule interviews over the next two weeks, with the goal of having a new hire start around Dec. 1, 2026.