JOINT ACTION AGENCY FOR POLICE SERVICES
A GREAT IDEA THAT COULDWORK
Susan D. Goodwin
Gust Rosenfeld, PLC
One of the challenges to all cities and towns is how to provide needed municipal services to their residents in the most efficient manner at the least cost. Cities and towns are the creative engines for many innovations in cost-effective service delivery. They have to be – as the lowest level of government, council members hear regularly from their friends and neighbors about servicedelivery and they deal with budgets that never have enough money.
Providing police services is one of the more expensive services a small town provides. Unlike utility departments, which are expected to pay for themselves through utility rates, police departments do not generate revenue to support themselves. But no one doubts the importance of the police services provided by local government. Municipalities either have their own police department or they contract with another entity for police services, such as a county or a nearby city. Contracting with another entity often works well, so long as there is an understanding of the service level required for the contract price. One of the concerns expressed most often about contracting police services out is giving up local control.
Three Arizona towns are exploring an innovative way to provide police services through a separate single entity – a Joint Action Agency for Law Enforcement. The towns of Hayden, Mammoth and Kearney are relatively close geographically and have similar demographics and economic bases. These conditions make it more likely that a joint action agency for police services might work. Before proceeding with a full-blown joint action agency agreement, Hayden, Mammoth and Kearny are taking an interim step whereby Hayden hires a police chief for its own police department and that police chief will oversee the police departments of Mammoth and Kearny. If that arrangement is successful, they may move forward with the creation of a separate entity for the provision of police services as authorized by ARS Section 11-952.02. A copy of that statute is attached.
The proposed Joint Action Agency Agreement to create the separate entity includes:
- A definition of “Law Enforcement Services”. This creates the baseline service level that would be provided for the individual cities’ payments. Additional services could be added for an additional cost to the individual city.
- Powers and duties of the Joint Action Agency, including hiring the Chief of Police.
- Membership of the Board of Directors.
- Provisions related to voting by members of the Board of Directors.
- Duties of the Chief of Police
- Requirements for adoption of the annual budget.
- Individual member payments to the Joint Action Agency.
- Provisions for withdrawal and exclusion of members.
Key to the success of such an agreement is the financial component. There will be one-time start-up costs. Much of these could be covered by contributions of existing equipment, but there will be additional costs. There will also be the on-going costs for personnel and operation and maintenance. How should these costs be shared? Percentage of calls in each town? Population? Number of officers in one town plus sharing of other costs? These decisions have not yet been made.
Police services are important to all communities. An agreement among different municipalities for a joint action agency to provide police services depends on each of the cities and towns having confidence that it will receive a level of service demanded by the residents, that there is sufficient local control over the operation of the separate entity and that the costs to participate are fair.
This idea could work in other areas too. For example, in Yavapai County, two fire districts created the Central Yavapai Fire and Medical Authority. Both fire districts remain in existence and levy taxes to support the operation of the Authority, a separate entity. It is estimated that this arrangement will save over $400,000 per year, among other things, eliminating duplications.
Similarly, a joint action agency could be used for the provision of regional water and sewer utilities and other services. What is important is that the service is the kind that makes sense on a regional basis, that there are enough cost savings, that there is a mechanism to insure enough local control over the services, that there are enough shared goals to make it worthwhile, that the community embraces the concept, and that the politics are right.
SDG:sdg 2758915.1 8/18/2016
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