Scotland County commissioners approve sheriff's request to add two transport vehicles

Scotland County commissioners voted to approve a motion to add two transport vehicles for the sheriff's office after the sheriff described multiple patrol and transport cars out of service and rising mileage on vehicles still in use.

The sheriff told commissioners the office routinely services vehicles every 6,000 miles and is now operating with a reduced fleet; one Dodge Charger he referenced had more than 115,000 miles and another vehicle in the fleet had about 260,000 miles. He said the county's inmate trust fund already holds money that could cover new vehicles and that the sheriff's office was not asking for general-fund appropriations.

The motion carried after commissioners discussed timing, procurement through state contract pricing, and whether county approval was required. A commissioner asked how long ordering and outfitting would take under the state contract cycle; sheriff's office staff said vehicles ordered under the contract typically take weeks to appear on dealer lots and several weeks more for outfitting.

Why it matters: Commissioners and the sheriff framed the purchase as needed to maintain transport operations and public-safety responses. The sheriff emphasized that transports include trips to hospitals, central prison and other counties, and that lack of reliable transport vehicles affects response capability.

Details and discussion: The sheriff described routine maintenance and several recent crash losses and said the office had tracked over $300,000 in the inmate trust fund that "we could purchase 2 vehicles right now with and still keep us at over $200,000." He also described long procurement lead times tied to the state contract process and said, historically, vehicles ordered in July were not received and fully outfitted until months later.

Commissioners and staff discussed vehicle types and approximate costs. The sheriff said the county could obtain Ford Explorer-style interceptors (the sheriff referred to them as hybrid-capable transport vehicles) under the state contract. He estimated the two vehicles, including outfitting (lights, radios and related equipment), would be in the roughly $90,00096$100,000 range combined once dealer discounts and state-contract pricing were applied.

The board did not specify a deadline for delivery in the motion. The sheriff and staff said procurement timing depends on the state contract release (annually around late September) and vendor availability.

Ending: The approved motion directs the sheriff's office to proceed with procuring two transport vehicles consistent with the discussion; the board did not authorize an additional county general-fund appropriation for the purchase at the meeting and the sheriff said the inmate trust fund money would be used to cover the cost.