Mutual Aid Information

The League of Minnesota Cities Insurance Trust has developed a Model Mutual Aid Agreement for cities to consider when they are working with other local governments. It provides a system to address liability, worker’s compensation and equipment damage in mutual aid incidents.

It authorizes the (Chief Administrative Employee) or his/her designee to dispatch
equipment and personnel as deemed necessary to assist another local government. This
decision shall be made after considering at all times and in each case the internal needs of
our local government in addition to the needs of the party requesting our local
government’s assistance.

Local governments in close proximity to each other often assist each other with resources such as police, fire, or public works. LMCIT recommends that these local governments sign a written mutual aid agreement. The written mutual aid agreement should clarify how the assistance will be requested, the party in charge and how any losses or claims will be handled. If there is no written agreement between parties and an emergency occurs, a community may still request assistance from other communities. In this case, the provisions of Minnesota Statute 12.331 Local Assistance between political subdivisions govern the relationship. This statute only applies if an emergency has been officially declared.

When disaster strikes in Minnesota, the response is always the same. Cities and other local governments around the state pitch in to help, sending equipment and crews of firefighters, police officers, public works and utilities workers, building inspectors, and whatever other help is needed. We saw that response when the floods devastated the northwest in 1997 and again when the tornadoes hit southern Minnesota in 1998, to take a couple of recent examples. Providing and receiving disaster assistance raises some coverage and liability issues for cities on both sides. This memo outlines the applicable statutes, summarizes how the city LMCIT coverage's apply, and identifies some potential problems that cities need to be aware of. There's also a checklist of potential coverage issues in emergency assistance situations.