2006 Minnesota Statutes

383B.255 PUBLIC SAFETY COMMUNICATIONS.
    Subdivision 1. Radio system. Hennepin County may establish and rent, lease, construct,
equip, and maintain a radio broadcasting station or stations, with land-fixed repeater stations
and other necessary communication equipment, to be used for public safety communications.
It may acquire land by gift, purchase, lease, or condemnation for use as a site for public safety
communications equipment. Public safety communications sites may be acquired by lease for
a period of up to 25 years in duration. Public safety communications may include police, fire,
highway maintenance, emergency medical service, local government, forestry conservation, and
other communications as determined by the county board.
    Subd. 1a. Antenna site use agreements. Use of county-owned radio towers, building
rooftops, lands, rights-of-way, and easements may be made available to commercial wireless
service providers for the purpose of installing antennas and equipment necessary for construction
of the national wireless telecommunications infrastructure. Hennepin county may acquire site
use fees, or by gift or other means, improvements to public safety communications facilities, or
other personal property, as compensation for antenna site use. Antenna site use agreements may
be entered into by any means available and in the manner determined by the county board, with
or without advertisement for bids.
    Subd. 2. Policy and operations. The public safety communications system shall be under
the direction of the sheriff. Public safety communications policies may be established by the
board of county commissioners.
    Subd. 3. Extension of services; charges. Public safety communications services may be
extended to any statutory or home rule charter city within the county, and to any adjoining county
or statutory or home rule charter city in an adjoining county, upon the written request of its
governing body to the Hennepin County board. All the communications equipment used in
connection with the extended service shall, unless otherwise provided by the Hennepin County
board, be owned, maintained, and serviced by Hennepin County. The board with the advice of
the sheriff may establish a charge for extended public safety communications services pursuant
to section 383B.118.
    Subd. 4. Duties of sheriff. The sheriff shall broadcast all public safety dispatches and reports
which, in the sheriff's opinion, relate to public safety communications.
History: 1983 c 223 s 1-4; 1997 c 58 s 1,2