Pequot Lakes and Lake Shore police have been issuing adminstrative fines for several years, and will continue doing so. Pine River police also use administrative citations.

Nisswa, Breezy Point and Crosslake police have never issued administrative citations, and don't plan to start doing so.

Administrative citations cost an offending driver less than state tickets, and don't go on a driver's record or affect a driver's insurance rates. If offered an adminstrative fine, a driver can choose the state ticket instead.

With state tickets, two-thirds of the fine goes to the state, and one-third of the base cost of the fine (not including fees and surcharges) goes to the city.

With administrative fines, one-third of the fine now goes to the state, and two-thirds goes to the city for law enforcement purposes. Previously, 100 percent of the collected municipal traffic citation fines went to the cities.

Pequot Lakes police also patrol the city of Jenkins and Jenkins Township. In those communities, administrative fine revenue is used for community enhancement, said police chief Jerry Braam.

Money has gone to establish a volunteer police reserve program, pay part-time officers who cover for full-time officers when they are on vacation or sick, as well as to school programs. Those include having the department's K9 check lockers for drugs and a character building program.

"It's not used to pay for gas in squads," Braam said. "If violators can help pay for good programs to make our communities better, I'm all for it."

The fines have generated about $184,000 in the three years of use in Pequot Lakes, Jenkins and Jenkins Township. Pequot Lakes has about $36,649 available in its community policing fund.

Pine River's police fund received approximately $15,000 a year in administrative fine revenue.

Lake Shore has about $8,000 in a public safety fund from administrative fines over the past couple years, and has spent little of that, said police chief Steve Sundstrom.

The money is dedicated to public safety improvements in the city, and could go toward such items as stop signs or "children at play" signs. The city has spent some of the money on medical bags for the police department.

Sundstrom said he'd like to see the revenue go toward the cost of civil defense sirens, because Lake Shore has no sirens. But raising money isn't the reason the city issues administrative citations.

"We don't use it as a revenue source to fund the police department," he said. "The biggest reason we use it is because the price on a state citation has gotten so high with surcharges and other fees added on. The minimum ticket we can write for a minimum of 10 mph over the speed limit is $125. An administrative citation is $60."

Sundstrom said a verbal warning can be just as good as a citation, as well.

"It's just another tool to use," he said of administrative fines.

Nisswa police chief Craig Taylor sees no reason to use administrative citations.

"The state has the state statutes we enforce and we don't need to create ordinances so we can write tickets and get the money. I don't agree with it," Taylor said. "We just enforce the state law."

Taylor said the goal is public safety and to change behavior, and officers can issue a state ticket or warning to accomplish that.

"You don't have to write a ticket to get someone to comply with safer driving conduct," he said.

Crosslake police chief Bob Hartman and Breezy Point police chief Kevin Merschman said it would be cost-prohibitive to issue administrative fines.

"I just feel more people deserve warnings than citations," Hartman said, noting if a person has a taillight or headlight out, he'd rather issue a warning because they may not have known the light was out.

Under the new law, if a driver disputes an administrative fine, the city must pay a third party to settle the dispute, which is where a city could incur expenses, Hartman said.

"I don't feel it is cost effective," Merschman said. "Public safety is not a for-profit business. A ticket is issued to correct behavior, not as a fundraiser."

Braam said in the three years Pequot Lakes police have issued such fines, no one has disputed the citation. Several people have opted for the state ticket, he said.

The new law does clarify when administrative citations can be issued for traffic offenses: exceeding the posted speed limit by 10 mph or less, failing to obey a stop line and vehicle equipment violations. All fines are $60.

Cities can continue to issue administrative citations for other ordinance violations; the new law applies to traffic regulations.

Sundstrom said 99 percent of administrative citations in Lake Shore were for speeding. However, officers don't usually issue a ticket for driving under 10 mph over the posted limit.

Braam said Pequot Lakes officers used administrative fines for drivers going up to 20 mph over the posted limit, providing they had a good driving record. He also said Pequot Lakes officers issued administrative fines for passing on the shoulder, but can no longer do so. Instead of a $60 administrative fine, it's a $140 state fine when passing on the shoulder.

"I'm happy the Legislature agrees administrative fines can be used by cities to regulate their own needs, but I'm not happy with the limits on what we can issue them for," he said.

Braam predicted law enforcement groups would approach the state Legislature next session to lessen the restrictions on issuing administrative fines.