GRAND FORKS (AP) - As populations shrink and municipal budgets tighten, some rural North Dakota towns are searching for alternative ways of providing police protection.

Last month, Langdon officials signed a three-year contract with the Cavalier County Sheriff's Department, after a debate over whether to re-establish the town's own police department, which was disbanded in 1991.

"We were looking at going back on our own to save some money, looking for a little better job," City Commissioner Lawrence Henry said. "We'd have better accountability with our own people, more say in what goes on, with our ordinances, and so forth."

Officials eventually determined, however, that the plan was not sound financially, because the city would have had to pay additional fees for the county law enforcement communications center and for housing prisoners in the county jail.

Nearby Walsh County has individual police contracts with nine communities, each paying an annual fee based on population. However, Grafton, the county seat, has its own police department.

Grand Forks County Sheriff's Maj. Mike Fonder said the fact that some small towns retain their own police departments can be troublesome, because the county often helps out with emergency calls.

With 28 officers covering 1,400 square miles, the force can be spread thin, he said.

"When (small towns) call on short notice, we try to work our best to respond to them accordingly," Fonder said. "We receive no reimbursement from those communities. We have met and discussed the contract possibility over the years. It's something we'd like to explore with the communities. But, so far, we haven't had anybody interested in that."

The eastern North Dakota town of Portland is doing some cop shopping, with its police protection contract with nearby Mayville set to expire at the end of the year. The city is entertaining proposals from both Mayville and the Traill County Sheriff's Department.

"The big issue is finance," Portland City Auditor Mary Geffre said.

But if Portland decides to go with Traill County to save money, it will hurt the Mayville Police Department budget.

"It really comes down to economics," Mayville Mayor Don Moen said.