9.b Informational-2023 PSR Users fee notice letter
Law Enforcement Center • 15015 62nd Street North • P. O. Box 3801 • Stillwater, MN 55082-3801
Telephone: 651-430-7600 • Fax: 651-430-7603 • TTY: 651-430-6246
www.wcso.info
Washington County is an equal opportunity organization and employer
Office of the Sheriff
Commitment to Excellence
Dan Starry
County Sheriff
Douglas H. Anschutz
Chief Deputy
May 8, 2023
Dear Washington County Public Safety Chiefs and Managers,
The 800 MHz Public Safety Radio System went into service in March of 2009 with users from Law
Enforcement, Fire, EMS and Public Works agencies across Washington County. As of April 2023, there
are 1,667 active radio users.
The Communications System Subscriber Agreement that your agency and the County entered into
requires the County to notify the users of any proposed changes in the annual Subscriber Support Fee
charged for each radio on the system. This letter will satisfy that requirement and also provide news on
system updates.
RADIO REPAIR FUND
The radio repair fund ($1 per radio per month) stopped collecting in Fall 2019 when the repair fund
balance exceeded $16,000. The fund will not collect again until the balance reaches $6000. At current
repair volumes, that is not anticipated to occur until 2024 or 2025. Repair volumes have substantially
decreased with many agencies replacing old radios with new APX models.
SUBSCRIBER SUPPORT FEES
2023 and 2024 subscriber support fees will remain $400.08 per year per radio. The subscriber support
fee maintains the system infrastructure by paying for electricity at the sites, fuel for generators, radio site
rent, yearly maintenance on the radio equipment, payroll and other costs associated with operating the
800 MHz Radio System. The support fee has not changed since ARMER system implementation in
2009. Fleet size continues to grow which has offset cost increases.
SYSTEM UPDATES
• A project to replace all VHF paging at the tower sites (fire paging and siren activations) is
ongoing and expected to conclude in summer 2023.
• Washington County is planning a future transition to automated fire paging at the request of the
fire chiefs. This technology would make fire paging more efficient and consistent. Automated
pages would go out on a new paging talkgroup to reduce talk time on the busy fire main.
• Automated paging changes and new metro and statewide encrypted talkgroups will require all
public safety radios in Washington County to be re-programmed in 2023.
• In the summer of 2023 Washington County and MnDOT will be changing all network transport
between the radio towers to modern Ethernet technology. This change is required for a future
radio system upgrade. The transition plan should not impact network operations.
• The Forest Lake site, located on a water tower near the High School, may be repainted in 2025 or
2026 dependent on this summer’s inspection. If a full repaint occurs all antennas will need to be
removed, placed on a temporary structure, and replaced when the water tower is refurbished. If
that project occurs a $80,000 expense is expected.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Nathan Timm
Radio Systems Manager
Washington County Sheriff’s Office
651-430-7863
Nate.timm@co.washington.mn.us