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Sheriff's SWAT team details equipment gaps, requests $50,000 county contribution and $200,000 total to reach NTO capability
Summary
Sheriff's Office SWAT leaders told the commissioners the team lacks current ballistic plates, modern gas masks, communications headsets, less‑lethal munitions and other equipment. They presented a 2026 equipment list totaling roughly $200,001.25 and asked commissioners for an initial $50,000 to begin upgrades while seeking grant funding.
Sheriff’s Office SWAT leaders presented a detailed list of equipment shortfalls and a budget request to county commissioners during the FY2026 budget workshop, describing expired ballistic protection, incompatible communications gear and shortages in less‑lethal munitions and training ammunition. Lieutenant Schafer (Sheriff’s Office) and other SWAT staff asked the court to consider a $50,000 county contribution this year to start replacing critical items; their full equipment list totaled about $200,001.25 as presented.
Lieutenant Schafer told the court that some ballistic helmets and plates in use exceed a five‑year warranty window and that the Federal Bureau of Investigation recently advised the department that one of the contractors used for helmets had supplied equipment that was manufactured outside the advertised specifications. “Ballistic items are only warrantied for 5 years,” Lieutenant Schafer said, and older plates or helmets may not…
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