by Jenna Kunze
The Public Safety Commission this week recommended the borough manager reappoint police chief Heath Scott, whose three-year contract will expire July 20.
“I proposed to my boss that I’d be happy to sign a five-year contract,” Scott told the commission on July 8. “Provided discussion go well in those areas I’ve asked to be addressed, I’d be honored to.”
Scott stipulated two conditions for a new contract: addressing policing outside of the townsite service area, and government respect for the department’s budget.
The assembly on July 18 will discuss adding a police service area question to the October municipal election ballot, per the commission’s recommendation to put the issue before voters again.
In October 2018, 68 percent of voters in Mud Bay, Lutak and the Haines Highway rejected a property tax increase to pay for police services in their areas, causing the borough assembly to restrict Haines Police to the townsite.
Borough management later issued a directive to police to respond to some emergency calls outside the townsite but that directive contradicts borough charter, which limits police to the townsite.
“I certainly know it’s not a quick fix, but one that should be addressed nonetheless,” Scott said.
If the assembly puts the tax question on the ballot, and if it is approved by voters, the assembly would decide on funding for the expanded services area. Scott said it will require an additional $70,000 to police the larger area.
In May, Scott met assembly resistance over a $28,000 budget overrun for standby time, which was eventually approved. Assembly member Tom Morphet accused Scott of using the borough like an ATM after the department exceeded its budget for the second time in three years.
It is important to make sure the government understands that public safety “is a very expensive undertaking,” Scott said Monday.
Borough manager Debra Schnabel and Scott will meet next week to discuss wage and benefits, Schnabel said. Last year, Scott earned $99,840, plus benefits.
Earlier this year, Scott was a shortlisted candidate for campus police chief at the University of Alaska Anchorage, an application process stalled due to a hiring freeze in the wake of the governor’s veto of 41 percent of state funding for the university.