SAIPAN — The Department of Public Safety will begin charging fees for a range of services it considers outside its core law enforcement responsibilities beginning this Sunday, March 8, under authority granted by Public Law 14-77.
The fee schedule covers a wide range of activities that require DPS personnel, equipment or resources. Funeral escorts will run $200, as will service of process in civil cases and marine event permits. Search and rescue operations that extend beyond 72 hours will also carry a $300 fee.
Officers providing assistance at special events, including traffic control, crossing guard services, grounds security and procession escorts, will be billed at $65 per hour per officer, the same rate as shoreline security protection for vessels. A full day of shoreline protection using a DPS patrol boat will cost $1,500.
Other fees in the schedule include $300 for towing privately owned boats, $80 for service calls such as alarm deactivations and squatter situations, $50 per week for armory storage, $100 per day for basic weapons handling and marksmanship classes, and $200 per escort for commercial motor vehicles. CMV permits carry a $150 fee, and any commercial vehicle that becomes disabled on a roadway and refuses to pay the removal fee may be impounded until all charges are settled.
DPS said the fees are intended to preserve department resources for emergency response and primary law enforcement duties while still allowing the department to provide optional services when requested.
Requests for non-essential services can be submitted to the Office of the Commissioner at (670) 664-9022 or commissioner@dps.gov.mp.
