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Response: The state should amend the tax <br />laws to provide tax incentives for <br />property owners who sell land and <br />easements to local units of government <br />when the land is to be used for park, <br />library, trail or green space purposes. <br />FF-33. Increasing Safe School Levy <br />Authority <br />Issue: Strong partnerships between schools <br />and local law enforcement are critical to <br />school safety. Police School Resource <br />Officers (SROs) are valued professionals in <br />school communities and provide support, <br />safety and security for students, staff and the <br />public. Further, SROs can provide regular <br />opportunities for informal, positive <br />interactions between students and police <br />personnel. <br />Under Minn. Stat. § 126C.44, the Safe <br />Schools Levy allows school districts to levy <br />for costs associated with student and staff <br />safety based on student enrollment numbers. <br />Some eligible expenses include police <br />liaison services; drug abuse prevention <br />programs; gang resistance education <br />training; school security; crime prevention; <br />and implementation of student and staff <br />safety measures. <br />Using Safe Schools Levy authority, local <br />school boards may raise additional resources <br />for school safety and security. Almost every <br />Minnesota school district currently levies <br />the full amount of $36 per pupil. This <br />amount does not cover the full cost of <br />providing this important service, and local <br />law enforcement agencies are not being fully <br />compensated for providing SROs. <br />Response: The League supports <br />increasing the maximum Safe Schools <br />Levy from $36 per pupil up to $60 per <br />pupil to ensure schools and communities <br />150 <br />are able to continue providing safe <br />schools programming <br />FF-34. Equitable Funding of <br />Community Education Services <br />Issue: Under Minn. Stat. § 124D.20, school <br />districts are authorized to levy for <br />community education programs that can <br />include youth recreational activities. <br />However, state statute limits the total <br />amount of revenue that can be raised by the <br />school district to fund community education <br />programs and this limit has not been <br />sufficiently increased in recent years. In <br />many instances, cities participate in the <br />funding of these programs and with the <br />statutory limit on the amount school districts <br />can levy, the increased cost of these <br />programs is increasingly falling on cities and <br />their property taxpayers. In areas where the <br />school district is significantly larger than the <br />city, the burden of funding these programs is <br />falling disproportionately on city taxpayers <br />while the programs benefit the entire school <br />district. <br />Response: The League of Minnesota <br />Cities supports a statutory increase in the <br />community education revenue <br />authorization for school districts. <br />Increasing the amount of the community <br />service revenue available to school <br />districts would provide a steady source of <br />revenue, which would be assessed against <br />all properties in the school district, not <br />just against properties in the city. <br />FF-35. Street Reconstruction Bond <br />Approval <br />Issue: Under Minnesota law, financing the <br />maintenance of streets can be a challenge for <br />city councils. Minn. Stat. § 475.58 subd. 3b, <br />authorizes a city council, by two-thirds vote, <br />to approve the issuance of bonds to finance <br />