As demands increase, public safety officials seek more funding

The Public Safety Department’s Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division conducted 139 gambling-related criminal investigations in 2016, a 39 percent increase from one year prior.

Bureau of Criminal Apprehension forensic scientists who specialize in firearms examinations have had their workload nearly double in five years, increasing the processing time to 120 days. Faced with a 47 percent increase in the last five years of the number of cases they address, BCA drug chemists now have a processing time of 75-80 days, more than double the turnaround time deemed acceptable by prosecutors and judges. Homicide investigations increased 63 percent from 2011 to 2015.

To help, the governor’s 2018-19 biennial budget proposal calls for General Fund spending increases in these areas and many others. Officials from the department shared those requests Tuesday with the House Public Safety and Security Policy and Finance Committee. No action was taken.

“The demand for DPS services has increased, and it’s a challenge to keep up,” said Commissioner Mona Dohman.

WATCH Complete video from Tuesday's meeting of the Public Safety and Security Policy and Finance Committee

She said the department would be “headed backwards” without increased support. “DPS won’t be able to keep pace with the current demand for services. Many additional resources would have to be used to maintain the status quo and not for improving services.”

The governor’s largest request is $20 million to replenish the state’s disaster contingency account, which is designed to quickly cover the non-federal share of presidentially declared disasters and the state’s share of disasters declared by the governor without the need for a special legislative session. This account helped local governments pay $14 million in eligible damages last year.

Deputy Commissioner Cassandra O’Hern said the account balance is projected to be about $6 million on June 30, 2017. “That is not enough to cover the natural disasters if we have another year like we did this past year.”

Rep. Matt Grossell, a former Clearwater County deputy sheriff, listens to discussion of the Department of Public Safety’s biennial budget request during the Feb. 14 meeting of the House Public Safety and Security Policy and Finance Committee. Photo by Paul Battaglia

The Railroad and Pipeline Safety Account was created in 2014. According to the governor’s budget proposal, “The account has supported training personnel, studies and familiarization training for 5,917 participants in 197 departments/agencies as of January 2017 throughout Minnesota.”

Initially funded through the General Fund, it has been sustained by an annual assessment on railroad and pipeline companies operating in the state. The governor’s plan calls for removal of the account’s July 1, 2017, sunset date and a $1 million yearly assessment reduction, while providing $1.5 million per year from the General Fund.

Other changes requested by the governor include:

• $6.87 million in the biennium — and $4.03 million ongoing each fiscal year — to maintain current departmental levels of service, including funds for increased employer-covered health care and pension contributions and compensation-related increases;
• $2.1 million in Fiscal Year 2018, $2 million in Fiscal Year 2019 and $400,000 in ongoing maintenance to develop a new predatory offender registration system to replace the current one that has been around for 15 years and has more than 77,000 offender updates processed each year;
• $1.23 million each year for seven BCA agents and two analysts to assist law enforcement across the state with complex narcotics and homicide investigations;
• $1 million each year to increase funding for multijurisdictional task forces that investigate narcotics, gangs and violent crime;
• $269,000 each year for two additional alcohol and gambling field agents and a liquor liaison educator;
• $250,000 each year for an additional two forensic scientists to examine firearms and ammunition;
• $250,000 each year for two positions to support a new criminal history system scheduled to be available early next year;
• $150,000 each year for an additional scientist in the drug chemistry lab; and
• $100,000 each year to cover the state’s responsibility to four local governments who provide bomb disposal services outside their regular service area when requested by other law enforcement.