Oak Ridge City Council voted unanimously to accept a $2.5 million direct appropriations grant from the State of Tennessee intended to purchase police body-worn cameras, and authorized staff to request that state legislators broaden the grant’s permissible uses so the city can also buy the hardware, software and other technology to implement a working digital evidence system.

City staff said the FY 2025–26 state budget included a $2.5 million direct appropriation for Oak Ridge, but the initial language limits the money strictly to buying body cameras and would not allow purchase of the backend systems, in-car cameras or related infrastructure that make the cameras usable for evidence storage and workflows.

A staff letter approved by council will be sent to Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally and Representative Rusty Grills Scarborough (as identified in staff materials) asking the legislature to allow the funds to cover “hardware, software, accessories, and other related systems, equipment, and mission-critical technologies necessary to implement a fully operational digital evidence ecosystem, including but not limited to the body-worn camera system, in-car video camera system, and less lethal energy weapon system.”

Staff estimated the additional costs for a complete, operational system at roughly $2.2 million; councilmember questions confirmed staff will not request additional city funding but will seek the legislative change to allow use of the existing appropriation for implementation needs.

Council voted 6-0 to accept the appropriation and to authorize the city manager to request legislative assistance expanding the grant’s scope.