Polk County commissioners approve five-year body‑camera leases, personnel changes and a series of plats, donations and orders

Polk County Commissioners Court approved several procurement, personnel and land‑use items during its regular session, including five‑year lease purchases for body‑worn cameras for the sheriff’s office and jail, the reclassification of a district attorney position into two part‑time roles, updates to the county personnel policy manual, acceptance of a donated road base, and actions related to a subdivision replat and a certificate of compliance for an RV park.

The court voted to purchase body‑worn cameras through Axon’s five‑year lease‑purchase program for both the sheriff’s office and the county jail. The sheriff’s cameras were listed at an annual cost of $53,844.79; the jail cameras at an annual cost of $49,439.10. The county record states the agreement includes replacement of malfunctioning cameras at no additional cost, and scheduled upgrades at the midpoint (2.5 years) and at the end of the five‑year term.

The camera purchases were presented as capital outlay items budgeted in the FY2025 adopted budget and require commissioner approval because of their size. The court approved both purchases by voice vote; the motions carried.

The court approved multiple personnel items. The meeting packet included a preliminary listing of personnel action forms (PAs) and an update to the personnel management guide that corrected an omission in the nepotism section: the written text had inadvertently omitted a reference to first‑degree restrictions that the accompanying diagram showed. The court approved the correction and the personnel actions by motion.

District Attorney Shelly…