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Town of Brownsburg board delegates $50,000 purchasing authority to fire chief, OKs vehicle buys and policy updates
Summary
At a regular meeting, the Town of Brownsburg Executive Board approved authorizing the fire chief to make purchases up to $50,000 under a restated interlocal agreement, adopted updated job and nepotism policies, approved two vehicle purchases from a Fort Wayne bid, and authorized surplus of older equipment and vehicles.
The Town of Brownsburg Executive Board approved several administrative and operational measures at a regular meeting, including delegating a $50,000 purchasing threshold to the fire chief, adopting personnel-policy updates and job descriptions, approving the purchase of two Chevrolet Tahoes through a City of Fort Wayne bid, and authorizing the surplus of older vehicles and office equipment.
Board members approved the change to the fire chief’s purchasing authority after a staff explanation that the new delegation is required by the town’s updated interlocal agreement. "The interlocal does specify the amount. It just does say that, it has to be upon the unanimous vote of the executive board," a staff member explained. The board then voted to authorize the fire chief to spend up to $50,000 under that provision; the motion passed by voice vote.
The action follows language in "section 6.2 of the second, restated interlocal agreement," which staff cited during the discussion. For the record, a staff member stated that the authority was being delegated to the Fire Chief.
The board also approved updates to a job description and a new nepotism/family-relationship policy. The board approved the revised job description for Division Chief of Fire Training (job code referenced in the packet as 1330) and adopted General Order 2024-209, titled "Family and romantic relationships at work." The Fire Chief summarized the policy change: "you can be married or blood relative, you just can't be at the same station and you cannot supervise the other." The board voted to adopt the new job description and policy; the motion passed by voice vote.
On equipment, the board approved purchasing two Chevrolet Tahoe vehicles through the City of Fort Wayne cooperative bid, using funds previously approved in the 2025 budget. The Fire Chief said the two vehicles listed on the Fort Wayne bid are priced at roughly $52,000 and $51,000 (price details in the meeting packet were presented but the transcript passages of the exact numbers were not fully clear). He said adding the department’s lighting package is estimated at about $10,000 to $12,000 per vehicle and that additional equipment would be transferred from current vehicles. The board voted to approve the purchase; the motion passed by voice vote.
The board also authorized the surplus of two 2012 and 2013 Ford Expeditions (previously used as pool cars) and several nonworking copiers and printers, directing staff to offer the vehicles on a municipal bid and to use a data-disposal vendor for electronics. Staff reported trade-in estimates of $2,800 and $3,100 but recommended municipal sale due to typically better returns. The surplus motion passed by voice vote.
Earlier in the meeting the board approved routine items by voice vote, including minutes from prior meetings and February 2025 expense reports and the annual review report.
The board scheduled its next regular meeting for April 15 at 5:30 p.m., as confirmed during the meeting.
Minutes in the meeting packet and staff reports were referenced repeatedly; board members indicated those documents as the basis for the approvals.
