Cooke County Commissioners unanimously approved a plan on Nov. 12 to move eligible sheriff's office personnel from a $50-per-month personal-phone stipend to county-issued AT&T FirstNet devices and FirstNet air cards, with a budget amendment to cover the change.

The sheriff told the court the county currently pays a monthly stipend and can move to FirstNet devices that, he said, come with free phones and "unlimited data." He described FirstNet air cards as faster, said AT&T had increased tower coverage in the county, and estimated per-line costs of roughly $33 per month under the FirstNet arrangement. The sheriff said the county currently has 33 stipend recipients and that moving to county-issued devices would lower recurring county outlays compared with full stipends.

Supporters said county-issued devices reduce the risk of officers storing evidentiary photos on personal phones and permit county IT or supervisors to remotely lock or disable lost devices. Commissioners approved the conversion and the associated budget amendment by voice vote, 5-0. The sheriff said the stipend will be paid in the November 26 paycheck and the conversion process is planned to start in December, meaning stipends will not be paid in December as devices are rolled out.

County staff indicated the formal budget amendment paperwork will be returned to the court when available. The court discussed including other eligible emergency services personnel (EMS) on the plan, with follow-up needed to determine logistics and billing.