The Haines Borough’s Public Safety Commission unanimously recommended Monday that the municipality pursue billing the Alaska State Troopers to reimburse the police department for emergency services outside the townsite.

The commission also recommended Police Chief Heath Scott estimate the cost of those emergency calls for the next year and meet with Chief Fiscal Officer Jila Stuart to project a possible increase in boroughwide sales tax, should billing the state fall through.

Scott said if his department continues on the current trajectory with limited funding for outer borough calls, “We’ll respond, we’ll be over budget, and I’ll lose my job.” The force responds to about three calls per month outside the townsite, which cost the department about $18,000 per year, he said.

Commission members include chair Jim Stanford, Judy Erekson, Kay Clements, and Judy Ewald.

Currently, the police department is funded by property taxes within the townsite, a contract with Department of Corrections for running a rural jail, and a portion of 1.5 percent sales tax collected within the townsite that also covers townsite road maintenance and animal control.

Commission chair Stanford brought four options to the commission Monday, continuing a discussion from a Jan. 18 meeting to “look at ways of funding emergency response to the outer borough” in light of a possible loss of a state trooper position here.

The first option was for the Haines Borough to bill the Alaska State Troopers for police department responses outside the townsite.

“Why not bill the state and see what happens?” asked commissioner Ewald.

Interim Borough Manager Brad Ryan said “hopes are slim” that the state will agree to reimburse the borough because of steep state budget cuts, but the idea is worth a request.

A second option was “a vote of the people to expand (police department jurisdiction) boroughwide,” which would include patrolling and emergency services. This would require a separate vote among people who live within the townsite and out of the townsite and may require a property tax increase.

The group quickly dropped from that option, Stanford saying, “I’m not so sure that would pass.”

A third option is to change the current boroughwide medical service area, that includes ambulance coverage and some dispatch, to an “emergency services” service area to rope in the police department and possibly search and rescue.

Stanford said this may require a boroughwide vote, but could be funded by an increase in the current .5 percent boroughwide sales tax used to fund ambulance service.

Assembly member Margaret Friedenauer, who was in the audience, questioned the sustainability of this option. “The state will say, ‘Great, we never have to put a trooper there again,’” she said.

“I do think this would be the best bet,” Ewald said, adding that she doesn’t think people who live along Haines Highway want regular patrolling, but they do want a response from Haines Police during emergencies.

The commission did not discuss a fourth option, to seek state funding of a village public safety officer stationed at Klehini Valley Fire Department to assist the fire department with fire, medical and some police responsibilities. That option would require partial borough funding.

Commissioner Erekson suggested the police department charge a fee to callers outside the townsite, saying tourists who put themselves at risk and pay little sales tax in town should be held accountable for their own emergencies.

But Jenn Walsh and Brian Clay of the Haines Volunteer Fire Department said it would be a huge administrative burden to bill individual insurance companies.

Assemblyman Tom Morphet, who serves as the commission liaison, said the commission was trying to solve a problem before outer borough residents claimed they wanted more emergency police service. “I think this is projecting a problem,” Morphet said.

Haines resident Paul Nelson warned the commission, saying, “This is the police asking for more police.”

But Police Officer Chris Brown said the department’s requests weren’t selfish, given an increasing drug problem in the borough.

“You can think what you want about Haines…I saw a lady stick a needle in her arm in the middle of the day,” said EMT Tim Holm.

Scott said the discussion at the meeting addressed funding, but not manpower and scheduling issues, requesting the commission discuss those topics at its next meeting.

“I do see a need for keeping the current Haines Police officers mentally healthy,” Stanford said.

The commission set its next meeting for 5:30 p.m. Feb. 21 in the assembly chambers.

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