Ramsey County commissioners begin talks on bonding options for new law enforcement center
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Summary
Commissioners added a bond discussion to the agenda and reviewed a bond attorney's memo that cites Century Code limits (5% of assessed valuation), placing Ramsey County's maximum bond capacity at roughly $39.6 million; commissioners said a new LEC likely requires additional partner support or alternative funding.
Ramsey County commissioners added an in-depth conversation about bonding for a new law enforcement center to their agenda and reviewed initial numbers that limit the county's borrowing capacity.
The commission voted to amend the agenda to include bonding discussion after a commissioner said the county must begin the process if it hopes to place a bond question on the ballot for 2026. A county attorney's memo circulated to commissioners explained the county would pay the bond process costs and that several decisions remain, including the maximum bond amount and the county's assessed valuation figure needed to calculate voter impacts.
The county's bond attorney has identified a legal maximum tied to Century Code: a county may issue bonds up to 5% of the total taxable value. "That would set us at about a $40,000,000 maximum amount, based on 2024/2025 numbers," the presenting commissioner said when outlining the attorney's estimate. The attorney's spreadsheet produced a more precise figure of $39,574,984 as a working range.
Commissioners and staff warned the 5% limit likely will not cover a full replacement facility sized to match existing joint capacity. One commissioner cautioned that, because the law enforcement center (LEC) currently serves multiple counties and a political subdivision, Ramsey County would not be able to build a new facility to accommodate the same number of inmates without additional buy-in from partner jurisdictions. "Without some additional buy-in or some additional assurances from other members of the JPA, we won't be able to build that facility," a commissioner said during the discussion.
Commissioners also raised timing concerns: to place a bond question on the 2026 ballot the county must finalize key details well ahead of the statutory deadline. Staff were asked to provide the assessed valuation figure and other missing data so the commission can refine the maximum-request figure and model estimated tax impacts for voters. No final decisions or bond amounts were adopted during the meeting; commissioners scheduled further discussion at upcoming LEC meetings and directed staff to collect the missing financial figures.
The immediate next steps identified were to obtain up-to-date assessed valuation numbers from staff and to meet with partners in the joint powers agreement to explore whether additional county or outside commitments could be secured before the commission sets a ballot question.
