Board approves lease-purchase of five 2025 Ford Explorers after extended procurement review

WAGONER COUNTY, Okla. — After extended public discussion and questions about procurement procedure, the Wagoner County Board of County Commissioners approved a lease-purchase agreement for five 2025 Ford Explorers for the sheriff's office.

Under-sheriff Mark Sechrist and other sheriff's office staff said the vehicles, which were available on state contract and had been shipped from Arizona to the county lot, were not yet placed into active service; they said the arrangement saved a second shipping leg and reduced cost. Commissioners questioned why the vehicles arrived before financing and signed documentation were finalized, whether county procedures were followed and which party would bear liability while the vehicles were on county property.

County counsel and staff reviewed the situation and told the board that, based on the description provided, the vehicles had been delivered without active deployment and that the county's remedy (returning the vehicles) would be available to the dealer if the county denied the purchase. Commissioners said the episode highlighted a need for clearer procurement instructions to vendors and for the sheriff's office to avoid having vehicles delivered to county property before board authorization.

The purchase package included vehicle base prices and upfitting costs (lights, radios, striping, computers). The county's amortization schedule in meeting materials showed a base principal of roughly $64,801 per vehicle and a lease-purchase payoff schedule; the upfit costs quoted by vendors totaled about $18,000 per vehicle (roughly $90,000 across five vehicles) for lights, radios and related equipment. A motion to approve the lease-purchase passed on final roll call with two votes in favor and one opposed (Commissioner Stamps voted no).