A couple of interesting items...

County board splits 3-2, raises permit to carry fee
By RENEE RICHARDSON
Senior Reporter
A gun permit fee question, which introduced constitutional rights into the discussion, was resolved at the Crow Wing County Board meeting Tuesday - at least for now.

Commissioners split, voting 3-2 in favor of raising the permit fee to carry a firearm from $60 to $75. Commissioners Phil Trusty and Paul Thiede were opposed. Commissioners Rachel Reabe Nystrom, Rosemary Franzen and Doug Houge voted in favor.

The county has about 1,200 permit holders. Permits are valid for five years.

The sheriff's department recommended raising the fee from $60 to $100. The sheriff's department presented an itemized list of the time and staff cost to process a permit, including background checks, for a cost of $75.91 based on labor. Looking at the sheriff's department report, Board Chairwoman Rosemary Franzen said the permit cost would need to be $90.20 per application to break even, based on labor and material costs as well as the state fee.

After a debate, Houge suggested a $75 fee and monitoring the time fee processing takes over the next year or two. Franzen cast the deciding vote after commissioners were deadlocked.

Based on the current fee and other charges for processing the application, including labor, materials and a state fee, the sheriff's department concluded it had a negative balance of $10,694. The suggested increase in the fee by the sheriff's department to $100 was estimated to bring in $10,000.

"What I believe is when all is said and done we are subsidizing to the tune of $10,700 the gun permit program and even possibly more than that," said Commissioner Rachel Reabe Nystrom. "I don't think anyone here wants to make money on gun permits but the other people in this county don't want to subsidize it and I totally understand that."

Crow Wing County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Debi Backdahl said the sheriff's office wants to keep the fee at the minimum needed.

Commissioner Phil Trusty said he did not want to raise the fee at all. Trusty questioned the amount of time involved - 10 minutes to mail a permit and the length of time needed for a criminal history or a driver's license check. The average time from application to mailed permit took about 4 hours and 20 minutes, the sheriff's department reported. Trusty said he'd like the sheriff's department to take another look at the numbers.

Commissioner Paul Thiede asked how many crimes were committed by people who are permitted to carry guns. Backdahl said it was a small percentage and that chances were they were being looked at for a crime not related to the gun. Thiede said the people affected by the fee were overall law-abiding residents.

"If we are subsidizing that to a small amount - and to me it's a very indeterminate amount exactly what those dollars are - I have no problem with it frankly," Thiede said. "It's a good use of the Second Amendment rights to protect yourselves."

Nystrom said tying the issue to the Second Amendment right to bear arms was ridiculous and makes the conversation inflammatory.

"I think that's a leap because what we are really talking about is a fee for service," Nystrom said. "What we are really voting on today is should 58,800 people subsidize, kick in, for the 1,200 where the costs are not covering their processing of a gun permit. I don't agree with that and I don't think the 58,800 people in this county do and it's nothing to do with the Second Amendment. It's paying your own way."

Nystrom said $10,000 in question was a partial salary at time of budget cuts. Her motion to set the fee at $80 died for lack of a second.

"This is a Second Amendment issue," Thiede said. "There is in this country going on right now a war over the Second Amendment right and ... it's not just imaginary."

"I would go right between all of you," Commissioner Doug Houge said, adding he was against using the fee as a profit center and he didn't think there was a subsidy issue here. Houge said there are departments many residents don't use but still pay for and he was leery of creating that kind of menu for services.

"That's just a part of taxpayers' responsibilities," Houge said. "And if we start doing that we're going to have a mess in front of us."

RENEE RICHARDSON may be reached at renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5852.'
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The issue could easily be solved, if no permits were required to carry a firearm.

It is about the second amendment and whether the 2nd Am. should be treated as a privilege or a right. I will give credit to the county on that. At least they are having the debate about it.

I'm amazed they didn't set it to the $100 max in '03 like so many other counties did.

+1 to Crow Wing

Interesting to see the debate. If those costs are accurate, the cities are easting 100% of the cost for the same background checks when a Permit to Acquire is applied for.

Aren't most services that a sheriff's office provide subsidized by the tax payer?

Excuse me sir. Before we arrest you could you write us a check to cover the fees?

Booking fees at the local jail have been $10. They may have gone up. Don't have it? That's ok, they'll get from you if someone drops $ off for you to buy snacks.

(I've been known to tell warrant arrestees to hand their wallets to their better halves to avoid having to pony up the feeright away. If they can see the judge and get a personal recognizance release they never have to pay) Most of these people don't have the $10 in the first place.

On the other hand, I am not against user fees...

the scam is that many of the low lifes that spend a lot of time in jail don't pay the fees...it's the offenders who don't reoffend as frequently footing the bill for all of these fees...just like any other type of orgainization...

I too, am surprised that it was under $100...

I'd like to know what work is being put aside at $90 per application to break even.