2002-08-14 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Consolidation of law enforcement services: Would your community benefit? Few responsibilities weigh as heavily on local officials as that of providing high quality law enforcement service. The public expects that competent assistance is a three-digit phone call away. Yet, increasingly, city leaders are struggling with this responsibility. Recruiting and retaining law enforcement personnel is difficult in this tight labor mark, particularly for small police departments. Small departments also fuce unique challenges when it comes to personnel issues such as staffing shifts, time off for training, funding of equipment, and capacity to respond to multiple and high-risk incidents. Consolidation of departments is one tool that local officials have used to maximize law enfurcement resources. Working under MS 471.59, the Joint Powers Act, some cities have formed legal agreements with neighboring cities to consolidate two or more police departments. Under the agreement, they create a joint board, consisting of one or more representatives from each of the participating units. Each city provides financial support to the joint board, and the board hires the chief and the officers, owns the equipment, and generally manages the police operation. . Recently, a number of advocacy group representatives began meeting to discuss the benefits, risks and issues associated with consolidating municipal police departments. The following organizations have been represented: . League of Minnesota Cities (LMC) . Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) . Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association (MCPA) . Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association (MPPOA) . Minnesota Sheriffs' Association (MSA) Early discussions focused on the challenges faced by small municipal police departments. Small departments make up a significant portion of municipal law enforcement agencies in Minnesota. According to the POST Board, there are 387 municipal agencies in Minnesota Of these, ten percent have only one officer. Fifty percent have seven or fewer officers, and 65 percent have ten or fewer. Also according to the POST Board, a minimum of seven officers are required to cover the shifts necessary to provide 24-hour police coverage sevell days per week. This means only half of Minnesota's municipal agencies are equipped to provide around-the-clock service. Officers working in small departments can end up with excessive responsibilities. At the same time, they may experience frustration due to the limited number of professional advancement opportunities. Too often entry-level police officers gain experience in small communities only to . be hired away by larger cities. Budget difficulties compound the problems by limiting the compensation and benefit incentives small departments can provide to attract and retain skilled officers. Finally, law enforcement professionals in some communities have been forced to function without critical training as a result of staffmg shortages, fiscal constraints, or a combination of the two. dJj.