CSSB 80(FIN): "An Act relating to police protection service areas in certain unified municipalities; and to police protection provided by the state in certain municipal areas."
00CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 80(FIN) 01 "An Act relating to police protection service areas in certain unified municipalities; 02 and to police protection provided by the state in certain municipal areas." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 29.10.200 is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 05 (54) AS 29.35.495 (police protection service areas). 06 * Sec. 2. AS 29.35 is amended by adding a new section to article 7 to read: 07 Sec. 29.35.495. POLICE PROTECTION SERVICE AREAS. (a) The 08 residents of an area in a unified municipality with a population that exceeds 50,000 09 residents may file a petition with the municipal clerk for formation of a police 10 protection service area for services to be provided by the Department of Public Safety 11 if the area is 12 (1) contiguous; and 13 (2) includes at least 50 residents or three percent of the municipal 14 population, whichever is greater.
01 (b) The petition form shall be supplied by the clerk at the request of a voter. 02 The petition must describe the boundaries of the proposed service area and the 03 additional police protection services to be provided by the Department of Public Safety 04 in the area. It shall be signed by a number of voters residing in the proposed service 05 area equal to at least 10 percent of the number of residents in the area who voted in 06 the last regular election. 07 (c) Upon receipt of a petition that meets the requirements of (a) of this section, 08 the municipal clerk shall submit the petition to the commissioner of public safety. 09 Within 30 days after receipt of the petition the commissioner shall notify the clerk of 10 what the estimated total cost of providing the services in the proposed service area 11 each month will be for a three-year period. The estimate shall be based on the direct 12 costs of troopers to be assigned to the area. If a trooper is expected to routinely cover 13 an area larger than the proposed service area, the cost of that trooper shall be prorated 14 proportionally to the amount of duty time spent within the service area. In addition 15 to the direct costs of troopers, the estimate shall include an amount to cover 16 administrative costs incurred by the department not to exceed 15 percent of the direct 17 costs. The sum of the direct costs and administrative costs equals the estimated total 18 cost for purposes of this section. 19 (d) Upon receipt by the clerk of the estimated total cost prepared by the 20 commissioner of public safety under (c) of this section, during the next regular or 21 special election held in the unified municipality the question of forming the proposed 22 police protection service area and of levying assessments to cover that estimated total 23 cost, plus costs of collection incurred by the municipality not to exceed four percent 24 of the estimated total cost, shall be placed before the voters residing in the proposed 25 service area. If the question is approved by a majority of those voting on the question, 26 the service area is formed and the commissioner of public safety shall provide the 27 additional services in that area. However, if the services have never before been 28 provided in the newly formed service area by the Department of Public Safety or if the 29 services are different from those that have been previously provided by the department, 30 the commissioner may phase in the service over a transition period of up to 18 months. 31 (e) The governing body shall levy assessments in the service area to finance
01 the additional police protection services in an amount equal to the estimated total cost 02 provided by the commissioner of public safety plus the amount for administrative or 03 other costs incurred by the unified municipality approved by the voters. Payments 04 shall be made to the commissioner within 60 days of receipt of assessments by the 05 municipality. The municipality may retain from assessments the amount levied for 06 administrative or other costs incurred by the municipality. 07 (f) At least once every three years an election shall be held by the unified 08 municipality in a police protection service area formed under this section on the 09 question of continuation of the service area. The commissioner of public safety shall 10 submit a revised notice of the estimated total cost of providing the services during the 11 next three years prepared in accordance with (c) of this section for inclusion with the 12 question, and the municipality shall indicate the amount for costs of collection incurred 13 by the municipality not to exceed four percent of the revised estimated total cost. If 14 the question is approved by a majority of the residents voting on the question, the rate 15 of assessments shall be adjusted accordingly by the municipality. If the question is not 16 approved, the service area is dissolved one year after certification of the election. 17 During the one-year transition period, the rate of assessment shall be reduced by 40 18 percent of the rate that had been in effect before the election and the services shall be 19 phased out in an orderly fashion by the commissioner of public safety. 20 (g) This section applies to a unified municipality with a population that 21 exceeds 50,000 residents, but not to other home rule or general law municipalities.