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throughout a region. One obstacle to <br />establishing public safety protection districts <br />is the absence of statutory authority to <br />establish public safety taxing districts. The <br />Legislature has granted authority for special <br />taxing districts to provide services such as <br />watershed management and emergency <br />medical services. Despite growing funding <br />and public safety protection staffing <br />challenges, this authority does not currently <br />exist for providing public safety protection <br />services. <br />Public safety protection districts would <br />create another option for funding fire, <br />police, emergency management, and <br />emergency medical services for local <br />communities. <br />Response: The League of Minnesota <br />Cities recognizes that some regions of the <br />state could sustain or improve public <br />safety protection services if public safety <br />protection districts were authorized. The <br />League supports authority for local units <br />of government to establish public safety <br />protection districts provided that 1) <br />participation in a district is a local <br />decision, and 2) public safety taxing <br />districts must be governed by elected <br />officials representing the participating <br />entities. With elected local official <br />participation, state -imposed levy limits on <br />public safety protection districts are <br />unnecessary. <br />FF-27. Housing Improvement <br />Areas and Special Service Districts <br />Petitioned by Business <br />Issue: In 1996, cities were granted general <br />authority under Minn. Stat. §§ 428A.11-.21 <br />to use Housing Improvement Areas (HIAs) <br />in order to finance housing improvements <br />for condominium and townhome complexes. <br />Several cities around the state have used this <br />145 <br />tool, and found it to be a useful mechanism <br />for maintaining older association homes. <br />The 2013 Legislature also granted HIA <br />authority to a county Community <br />Development Authority (CDA). As part of <br />that authority, the CDA is required to gather <br />local approval before creating an HIA. <br />In 1996, the Legislature also gave cities the <br />general authority to create Special Service <br />Districts (SSDs) under Minn. Stat. <br />§§ 428A.01-.101. Cities around the state <br />have used this tool to provide an increased <br />level of service to commercial or industrial <br />areas, commonly in areas of retail <br />concentration. SSDs are established at the <br />request of local businesses, who ultimately <br />pay for and benefit from the increased level <br />of service. A SSD may be established <br />anywhere in a city but only business <br />property (i.e. commercial, industrial, utility, <br />or land zoned for commercial or industrial <br />use) will be subject to the service charge. <br />Some special services have included street <br />and sidewalk cleaning, snow and ice <br />removal, lighting, signage, parking, parking <br />enforcement, marketing and promotion, <br />landscaping, and security. A SSD may be <br />established only by petition and the city <br />adopts an ordinance to establish it. Minn. <br />Stat. § § 428A.09-10 establishes procedures <br />for the business owners in the SSD to veto <br />or end the SSD. The 2013 legislature <br />extended the sunset for both tools for 15 <br />years, making it set to expire on June 30, <br />2028. In 2017, the House considered <br />legislation that was ultimately unsuccessful <br />to repeal the general SSD authority for <br />cities. There are currently over 15 cities that <br />have established SSDs around the state. <br />As cities work to develop and/or redevelop <br />commercial, industrial, and residential areas, <br />new ways of paying for and providing <br />increased levels of service should be <br />available to local entities. Use of Special <br />