HomeMy WebLinkAboutC7. MOU Missouri River
Commission Memorandum
REPORT TO: Honorable Mayor and City Commission
FROM: Rich McLane, Interim Chief of Police
SUBJECT: FY16 and FY17 Memorandum of Understanding with Missouri River
Drug Task Force.
MEETING DATE: April 6, 2015
AGENDA ITEM TYPE: Consent
RECOMMENDATION: Authorize Chris Kukulski and Rich McLane to sign FY16 and FY17
Memorandum of Understanding with Missouri River Drug Task Force.
BACKGROUND: The City of Bozeman and Bozeman Police Department has been a member of the MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE (MRDTF) since 1990. The mission of the
MRDTF is to provide a collaborative federal, state and local law enforcement effort to
identify, target and address those involved in drug trafficking, manufacture and/or violence.
The MRDTF utilizes sophisticated long-term investigative approaches, including undercover
surveillance operations, the purchase of evidence and information, and electronic surveillance to disrupt and dismantle targeted drug organizations.
The purpose of this Memorandum of Understand (MOU) is to establish general guidelines and
operational procedures for a multi-agency Task Force to address drug-related crime. Agencies participating in this project recognize that combating drugs is of paramount importance to our
communities. Through our united efforts, our resources will be better utilized and our
investigative efforts will be more fruitful on behalf of the communities we serve. The
participating agencies are committed to cooperative efforts and full information sharing through
their participation in the MRDTF. Members include: City of Bozeman; City of Helena; City of Belgrade; Broadwater County; Gallatin County; Lewis & Clark County; Madison County; Park
County; City of Livingston; City of West Yellowstone; and Meagher County. This MOU is
generally reviewed and updated every 2-3 years.
UNRESOLVED ISSUES: None.
ALTERNATIVES: As recommended by the commission.
FISCAL EFFECTS: Participation in MRDTF allows for grant opportunities that pay partial
salaries of two Bozeman police officers. Shared training and equipment is used that would
otherwise be cost prohibitive to the City of Bozeman. Forfeiture of seized money, vehicles or
items as part of drug interdiction efforts are used to augment local operations.
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Attachments:
FY16/FY17 Memorandum of Understanding – Missouri River Drug Task Force.
Report compiled on: March 11, 2015
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MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
FY 2016 – FY 2017
Purpose
The purpose of this Memorandum of Understand is to establish general
guidelines and operational procedures for a multi-agency Task Force to
address drug-related crime. Through the spirit of cooperative efforts, and a
strong commitment to combat drug-related trafficking, manufacturing, and
violence, the MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE was formed in 1990. Agencies
participating in this project recognize that combating drugs is of paramount
importance to our communities. Through our united efforts, our resources will be
better utilized and our investigative efforts will be more fruitful on behalf of the
communities we serve. The participating agencies are committed to
cooperative efforts and full information sharing through their participation in the MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE.
Mission Statement
The mission of the MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE is to provide a
collaborative federal, state and local law enforcement effort to identify,
target and address those involved in drug trafficking, manufacture and/or
violence. The MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE will utilize sophisticated long-
term investigative approaches, including undercover surveillance operations, the
purchase of evidence and information, and electronic surveillance to disrupt
and dismantle targeted drug organizations.
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MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
FY 2016 – FY 2017
This agreement is entered into March 10, 2015 among the following local
government jurisdictions: City of Bozeman; City of Helena; City of Belgrade;
Broadwater County; Gallatin County; Lewis & Clark County; Madison County;
Park County; City of Livingston; City of West Yellowstone; and Meagher County.
No new entity is created by reason of this Agreement.
Whereas, there is evidence of drug trafficking, manufacturing, and drug-related
violence in the above-described jurisdictions, and that such illegal activity has
a substantial and detrimental effect on the health and general welfare of the
people residing in these jurisdictions, the parties hereto agree to the following:
1. The Missouri River Drug Task Force (MRDTF) will perform the activities and
duties described below:
A. Disrupt the illicit drug traffic in above jurisdictions by immobilizing
targeted violators and trafficking organizations, by;
B. Gather and report intelligence data relating to trafficking in
narcotics and dangerous drugs;
C. Conduct undercover operations where appropriate and
engage in other traditional methods of investigation,
developing probable cause for issuance of warrants for search
and seizure, and arrests, in order that the Task Force's activities will
result in effective and successful prosecution before the courts of
Montana.
2. To accomplish the objectives of the MRDTF, the Gallatin County Sheriff’s
Office agrees to provide two (2) deputies and an administrative
assistant, the Bozeman Police Department agrees to provide two (2)
police officers, the Lewis & Clark County Sheriff’s Office agrees to provide
one (1) deputy, the Helena Police Department agrees to provide two
(2) police officers, and the City of Livingston and the Park County
Sheriff’s Office agree to provide one (1) deputy. Lewis and Clark County
Sheriff’s Office agrees to provide one (1) administrative assistant who
will be an employee of Lewis and Clark County with wages and
benefits to be paid for by the grant, subject to the same constraints.
The County Attorney Offices of the participating counties agree to assist
the MRDTF by providing legal advice, drafting search warrants and
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investigative subpoenas, prosecuting drug offenders, and
prosecuting drug forfeiture actions.
Broadwater County agrees to submit intelligence of drug activity within
their county, and if possible, manpower as needed.
Madison County agrees to provide equipment, intelligence of drug
activity within their county, and if possible, manpower as needed.
Meagher County agrees to submit intelligence of drug activity within their
county, and if possible, manpower as needed.
The City of Belgrade agrees to submit intelligence of drug activity within
their city, and if possible, manpower as needed.
The City of West Yellowstone agrees to submit intelligence of drug activity
within their county, and if possible, manpower as needed.
3. The officers assigned to the MRDTF shall adhere to standard law
enforcement policies and procedures as approved by the Board and those
policies and procedures in effect in each member's respective agency.
Failure to adhere to policies and procedures shall be grounds for dismissal
from the MRDTF.
MRDTF officers shall remain subject to the policies, procedures, and
regulations of their parent agencies. The Executive Board will resolve any
operational conflict between MRDTF policies and procedures and those
of a parent agency. MRDTF policies and procedures will be adopted and
used by all MRDTF members relative to drug operations and informant
handling.
For grant purposes only, the MRDTF Board of Directors will take administrative
financial conflicts under consideration; however, any conflicts must be
resolved to the satisfaction of Gallatin County.
4. Law enforcement officers assigned to the MRDTF by participating
agencies (except state agents) shall be deputized in each participating
jurisdiction in a manner allowed by law.
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5. To accomplish objectives of the MRDTF, Gallatin County will assign one
supervisory officer, one deputy and one administrative assistant personnel
to the MRDTF.
6. Each participating agency is responsible for establishing and paying the
salary and benefits, including overtime, of their respective officer(s)
assigned to the MRDTF. MRDTF agencies must bill the MRDTF Commander
on a quarterly basis no later than the second of each month following the
end of each quarter. Any erroneous billing submitted and found to be
in error will be returned to the agency that submitted the billing for
correction and resubmission.
7. Gallatin County agrees to perform the duties of lead agency and will
maintain all programmatic and financial records of the MRDTF, except for
financial records of the joint MRDTF forfeiture accounts. Gallatin County
will make all quarterly reports to the Board of Crime Control, and will
submit relevant intelligence to the appropriate State and Federal
agencies. Lewis and Clark County agrees to maintain all records of the
Drug Forfeiture Fund (identified as Fund 241) and Equitable Sharing Fund
(identified as Fund 242).
8. The MRDTF shall maintain, on a current basis, completed and accurate
records and accounts of all obligations and expenditures of funds under
this Agreement in accordance with specific accounting principles and
instructions provided by the Department of Justice and the Montana
Board of Crime Control to facilitate inspection and auditing of such
records and accounts.
9. The MRDTF shall permit and have readily available for examination and
auditing by the State, the Department of Justice and their duly
authorized agents and representatives, any and all records, documents,
accounts, invoices and receipts of expenditures relating to this Agreement.
Therefore, records must be maintained by MRDTF, which will continue to
exist until all audits and examinations are completed and resolved, or for
a period of three (3) years after termination of this Agreement.
10. The lead agency will negotiate an indirect cost on an annual basis for
the administration of this grant award. The indirect cost for FY 2016 will be
negotiated and determined prior to the submission of the grant
application.
11. An Executive Board shall be established. Its voting members shall be as
follows: the Chief of Helena Police Department; the Chief of Bozeman
Police Department; the Chief of West Yellowstone Police Department;
the Chief of Livingston Police Department; the Chief of Belgrade Police
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Department; the Sheriff and the County Attorney of Gallatin County;
the Sheriff and the County Attorney of Lewis & Clark County; the Sheriff
and County Attorney of Broadwater County; the Sheriff of Madison
County; the Sheriff and County Attorney of Park County, and the
Sheriff of Meagher County. The members of the Executive Board may
designate persons from their agencies to represent the members
during Executive Board meetings.
The Executive Board shall have the following authority: to select a Chair
and Vice Chair; to regulate and manage the MRDTF; to appoint the Task
Force Commander and to designate a supervisor in the extended absence
of the Task Force Commander; to establish subcommittees of the Board to
conduct business; and to resolve disputes arising from MRDTF operations.
The Chairperson will be the Task Force Commander’s primary contact with
the Board on day-to-day issues and will bring to the Board’s attention any
matters which would require a consensus of the Board prior to a regularly scheduled quarterly meeting. The Chairperson shall also
preside over the Board meetings and is responsible for the formulation of
minutes for the meetings and notification of Board members of upcoming
meetings. The Chairperson shall be a local law enforcement member
associated with the local drug task force. The tenure of the Chairperson
and Vice-Chairperson shall be reviewed at the end of each calendar
year. The vice-chairperson shall conduct the same business in the absence of the chairperson.
A. The Executive Board shall meet at least quarterly or as
convened by the Chair or Vice Chair to receive reports
relative to the progress, functions, and special duties
accomplished by the Task Force.
B. A quorum of the Executive Board is needed to conduct business.
Seven Executive Board members, or their designees, shall constitute
a quorum. In meetings where a quorum is established, matters
coming before the Executive Board may be approved by a
majority vote of the members in attendance at a meeting.
C. Agendas and Minutes. The Task Force Commander and the
Executive Board Chair are responsible to see that agendas are
prepared and distributed far enough in advance of meetings to
ensure adequate preparation and participation in agenda items.
The Task Force Commander and the Executive Board Chair are
responsible to see that accurate and complete minutes are taken
of each executive board meeting. Separate executive minutes
may be taken for discussion of active and ongoing investigations.
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12. Assets seized during Task Force investigations shall be shared as follows:
A. Assets, for the purposes of this agreement, shall include all items of
value seized relative to a case and all court ordered fines or
contributions to the drug fund.
The Board of Directors shall appoint two "Drug Fund Managers" who
shall have the authority to expend monies from the Drug Fund as
designated by the Board of Directors. This authority shall be written.
The Drug Fund Managers must be Board members and may not be
a Task Force Agent.
B. Expenditure Authority:
• Expenditures over $1,000 up to and including $2,000 must have
the approval of the Task Force Commander.
• Expenditures over $2,000 and less than $10,000 must have the
approval of the Drug Fund Managers.
• Expenditures over $10,000 must be approved by motion
made and carried during a meeting of the Board of Directors.
• Payments to any cooperative citizen shall not exceed $5,000 in
any fiscal year.
C. Felony Cases:
Where any Task Force agency has participated in the investigation,
all monies and assets from cases filed in state and federal district
court, including all civil forfeiture cases and cases where felony
charges are reduced to misdemeanor charges, shall be deposited
into the Drug Forfeiture Fund, “Fund 241.”
D. Misdemeanor Cases:
All assets from misdemeanor cases that are handled through
"Justice of the Peace" or "City Court" shall remain with the local
jurisdiction and are not required to be deposited to the MRDTF Drug
Forfeiture Fund.
13. Forfeiture and Equitable Sharing Funds:
A. Missouri River Drug Task Force Forfeiture Fund shall be maintained
by Lewis and Clark County as a part of the Lewis and Clark County
Finance System. The Drug Forfeiture Fund is identified as, "Fund 241."
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B. Missouri River Drug Task Force Equitable Sharing Fund shall be
maintained by Lewis and Clark County, and is indentified as, "Fund
242." These funds, as identified by generally accepted accounting
procedures, are "Special Revenue Funds."
14. Distribution of Task Force Forfeiture and Equitable Sharing Funds:
Participants in the MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE agree that assets
forfeited and received by MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE will be utilized
primarily for the continued funding of the MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK
FORCE (Byrne Funded Task Force). Upon request of any individual agency
the Board may reimburse an agency for expenditures related to Task Force
business.
The Board of Directors will function as the Seizure Board for Missouri River
Drug Task Force. Any expenditure of forfeited MRDTF funds requires approval
by a majority of the Board of Directors.
MRDTF will comply with the U.S. Department of Justice's requirements for the equitable sharing of federally forfeited property for state and local law
enforcement agencies.
The Task Force Commander shall make recommendations to the Board
regarding the extent to which forfeited funds should be shared with
outside agencies participating in case investigations.
15. Drug Fund Financial Reporting:
The Drug Fund Managers shall provide a financial report to the Board of
Directors at the quarterly meetings. The report shall become a part of the
meeting minutes.
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The minimum requirement of the report is:
1. Balance of the fund at the beginning of the quarter.
2. Total deposits to the fund during the quarter.
3. Total expended from the fund and an itemization of the
expenditures.
4. Balance for the fund at the end of the quarter.
16. Pending Asset Forfeiture Report:
Each participating jurisdiction agrees to provide the Task Force
Commander with relevant information on asset forfeiture cases and cases
with dispositions pending.
In the event that the Byrne Memorial Grant is unable to fund the
MISSOURI RIVER DRUG TASK FORCE, funds acquired through forfeitures in
Forfeiture Fund 241 and Equitable Sharing Fund 242 will be used as
allowable for the continuation of the Task Force as set forth in Section 14.
If the Byrne Memorial Grant funding can no longer support the MRDTF
and the MRDTF is unable to function due to the lack of funding, The Board
of Directors will decide to liquidate the assets of Forfeiture Fund 241 based
on a formula of each agency's financial participation in the MRDTF grant.
Transfer of assets from Equitable Sharing Fund 242 will follow federal
guidelines regarding, "Transfers to Other Law Enforcement Agencies" which
states:
A State or local law enforcement agency may transfer a portion of its
sharing receipts to another state or local law enforcement agency for law
enforcement purpose. The uses of such expenditures by the recipient
agency are subject to the permissible use provision of the Guide. Such
transfers must be expressly provided in the Form TD F 92-22.46 and the general purpose indicated.
Before the receiving law enforcement agency transfers cash, property, or
proceeds to other law enforcement agencies, it must first verify that the
other agency has a current and valid federal equitable sharing
agreement on file. If there is no agreement on file, the law enforcement agency must obtain one from the receiving agency and forward it to the
Executive Office for Asset Forfeiture.
17. All personnel assigned to the MRDTF shall be the responsibility of the Task
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Force Commander. The Task Force Commander will conduct preliminary
investigations concerning allegations of misconduct against any member
assigned to the Task Force. The preliminary investigation will be reduced to
a written report and submitted to the member's parent agency.
18. Damage to private property. It will be the duty of the Task Force
Commander to ensure that written operations plans are used. This
includes, but is not limited to: drug buys, search warrants, and high-risk
arrest warrants. If there is a possibility of damage to private property
during these activities, the head law enforcement officer (or his/her
designee) of the jurisdiction in which the activity is to occur will be
required to approve the proposed operation. Upon approval, this
jurisdiction will accept responsibility for damages up to a maximum of
$250.00. Any amount over $250.00 will be paid out of the MRDTF Drug
Forfeiture Fund.
19. The participating agencies agree to supply their assigned officer(s) with
equipment necessary in carrying out MRDTF objectives including a radio-
equipped automobile. Upon termination of the MRDTF, equipment that
was initially supplied to the MRDTF by participating agencies shall be
returned to said agency. Equipment shared jointly by all participating
MRDTF agencies shall be split equally upon termination of the MRDTF.
Conflicts regarding a split of equipment will require a sale of the
equipment with the offering being made to the member agencies only.
The proceeds of any sale will be divided equally between the remaining
agencies. Once an agency receives a piece of equipment, it shall be the
responsibility of said agency to maintain the equipment. In the event said
equipment becomes lost and/or stolen or damaged, it shall be the
agency's responsibility to replace said equipment.
20. Each officer assigned to the MRDTF will carry only those firearms, while on
official duty, that are approved by their respective agencies. Further, the
officer shall be qualified with those firearms.
21. Participating agencies agree to supply canine and/or tactical team
assistance for drug operations within the MRDTF jurisdiction at no
additional cost. Canine and tactical teams shall be requested from
the nearest team's geographical location. Such requests will be at the
direction and approval of the Task Force Commander.
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22. Sub-Recipient Agency Responsibilities:
Gallatin County will act as the lead agency for the MRDTF and is
responsible for reporting and financial transactions with the granting
agency, the Montana Board of Crime Control (MBCC).
As Gallatin County will be receiving and distributing money on behalf of
the MRDTF, Gallatin County is considered to be a pass-through entity and
all other agencies participating in the MRDTF are considered sub-
recipients. As such, Gallatin County is required to inform you of the
following:
The funding you will be receiving under the terms of this MOU is federal
assistance originating from the United States Department of Justice,
(CFDA #16.738), passed through the State of Montana Board of Crime
Control, and then through Gallatin County.
It is understood that any agencies receiving monies from this grant will be
monitored by Gallatin County.
By accepting any funding pursuant to this agreement, all remaining
parties agree that they are considered sub-recipients of federal funding
and are therefore required to satisfy all of the legal and contractual
requirements of the United States Department of Justice and the Montana
Board of Crime Control including the conditions set forth in:
• The annual award documents from Gallatin County
• The Montana Board of Crime Control Special Conditions
• The Montana Board of Crime Control Subgrant Guideline Information
23. This agreement is in effect from July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2017.
Revised:
12/22/93, 05/09/08, 12/05/01, 12/05/01, 01/05/94, 01/11/96, 01/14/97, 01/09/98,
12/09/99, 12/21/00, 12/03/02, 01/05/04, 05/06/05, 01/26/06, 01/28/09, 02/20/09,
05/24/11, 4/11/13, 3/10/14, 3/10/15.
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SIGNATURE PAGE
CITY OF BOZEMAN
_________________________________________________________________ City Manager Date
_________________________________________________________________
Chief of Police Date
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