12-04-2023 Council Work Session Minutes

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8. Anoka County SWAT JPA Public Safety Director John Swenson reviewed for Council discuss a proposed Joint Powers Agreement (JPA)with the Anoka County Sheriff's Office (ACSO) which currently operates a stand- alone Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team that provides service to all of Anoka County. ACSO has not been able to staff their SWAT Team at a level that meets the Tier 1 team standards of the National Tactical Officers Association (NTOA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA) requirements. ACSO is in the process of creating a multi-jurisdictional SWAT team that will meet staff requirements for Tier 1 team and will serve as a collaborative regional resource; the JPA would allow for Lino Lakes Public Safety to become a member of the team along with six other agencies. Council discussed the annual costs as well as the benefits to the City. Council was generally in favor of moving forward with the JPA, but noted that they expect there to be no impact to the City's public safety services. Mr. Christopher Stowe, 426 Pine Street, stated he is against this because he's already paying the sheriff's office to kick in doors on no knock warrants. He added that if (an officer) wants to be a sheriff he should go be a sheriff otherwise just be a Lino officer. 9. Earned Safe and Sick Time Human Resources and Communications Manager Meg Sawyer and Finance Director Hannah Lynch presented to Council on the new law passed during the 2023 legislative session (Chapter 53) that will require employers to provide all employees with earned sick and safe time (ESST) beginning January 1, 2024. Earned sick and safe time is paid leave employers must provide to employees in Minnesota that can be used for: - Care of employee or family member's mental or physical illness, treatment, or preventative care; when determined by health authority that employee or family member is at risk of infecting others with a communicable disease. - Employee or family member's absence due to domestic abuse, sexual assault or stalking. - Closure of employee's workplace due to weather or public emergency or closure of a family member's school or care facility due to weather or a public emergency. Staff presented several options for implementation and proposed implementing ESST for all part- time and temporary employees through the accrual method and implementing ESST into our current Paid Time Off(PTO) leave and Sick leave policy for full time employees. By incorporating ESST into the City's current PTO and Sick leaves through the accrual method and carryover method, it would require no additional tracking or accrual needed and no additional ESST payout at time of separation. Due to lack of guidance by the state as to ESST for on-call firefighters, staff will update Council as guidance is received from lawmakers and the League of Minnesota Cities. Administrator Cotton added that local elected officials do not accrue in ESST per recent guidance by lawmakers.