MARSHALL — This week, Lyon County and the city of Marshall are each set to receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in state aid funding for public safety. Lyon County Sheriff Eric Wallen and Marshall Public Safety Director Jim Marshall said that while they don’t have plans for spending the aid money yet, it was something that would make a difference for area law enforcement agencies and emergency responders.

“It’s helpful, because there are a lot of things agencies just can’t budget for,” Wallen said.

“For sure it’s going to have an impact,” Marshall said. He said Marshall Police would be taking time to discuss how best to use the aid funding. “We want to make sure we use it wisely.”

This year, the Minnesota Legislature made a one-time appropriation of $300 million for public safety aid, that will be split up among Minnesota counties, cities, tribal governments, and townships with a population of 10,000 or more. According to the Minnesota Department of Revenue, the city of Marshall was certified to receive $595,928 in aid, and Lyon County was certified for $410,980.

Of the total $300 million in one-time public safety aid, 70% was allocated to cities and townships, and 30% was allocated to counties and tribal governments. Aid amounts for each local government were calculated based on population.

“This funding will allow public safety officials to invest in the things that matter most to their communities, whether that’s officer recruitment and retention, a new ambulance, or fire and rescue equipment,” Gov. Tim Walz said in a news release announcing the public safety aid last week.

There aren’t many restrictions on how the aid money can be used. On its website, the state Department of Revenue gave examples of eligible uses ranging from training programs and mental health crisis responses, to purchasing fire and rescue equipment. The few things the aid money can’t be used for include purchasing armored vehicles or tear gas, or constructing or remodeling police stations.

The Department of Revenue said the aid would be paid in one installment, on Dec. 26.

Wallen and Marshall said their agencies don’t have exact plans yet on how to use the aid funding for Lyon County and the city of Marshall.

“We know this is a new opportunity for us,” Marshall said. He said the Marshall Police Department would be taking some time to discern the best uses for the aid funding, especially since it is only a one-time allocation. The positive thing is that there is no spend-down date on the aid, so the city can take its time to decide where the funding can go, he said.

“We’re grateful for it, for sure,” Marshall said. “We can do a lot of good with it.”

Wallen said one use for some of the county’s public safety aid could be covering the cost of replacing body-worn cameras used by the Sheriff’s Office.

The Sheriff’s Office starting using body cameras about two years ago, but the cameras and the server they use for video storage are now no longer being supported by the manufacturer. In October, the Lyon County Commissioners voted to approve a proposal for new cameras from Axon Enterprise.

Wallen told commissioners that the new Axon cameras would cost about $94,000 for five years of service. The proposal also included new cameras at years two and five of the plan.

Wallen said there have also been discussions about using some of the funding for technology updates in the Lyon County jail. “That is as far as we’ve really taken it,” he said.

One of the positives of the one-time public safety aid was that it might help law enforcement agencies with recruiting new officers, Wallen said. Minnesota is seeing a shortage of law enforcement recruits, he said. “We don’t see those trends changing anytime soon.”

The Lyon County Sheriff’s Office has been fortunate in that only one deputy has left the department in the past five years, Wallen said. But the issue of recruitment “is certainly still on the radar,” he said.

Public Safety Aid amounts for area counties

Lincoln County – $130,070

Lyon County – $410,980

Murray County – $187,318

Pipestone County – $173,471

Redwood County – $312,947

Yellow Medicine County – $208,901

Public Safety Aid amounts for area cities

Balaton – $25,819

Canby – $72,730

Florence – $1,225

Garvin – $5,383

Ghent – $16,410

Granite falls – $117,584

Hanley falls – $10,371

Hendricks – $26,650

Ivanhoe – $24,024

Lake benton – $29,713

Lucan – $14,572

Lynd – $18,904

Marshall – $595,928

Milroy – $11,203

Porter – $6,914

Redwood falls – $221,733

Russell – $15,185

Ruthton – $9,802

Slayton – $87,346

Taunton – $5,908

Tracy – $90,365

Tyler – $49,055

Vesta – $11,947

Wabasso – $32,120

Walnut Grove – $32,558