Douglas County accepts two sheriff donations and votes to retain deputy after grant lapse

The Douglas County Board accepted two donations presented by Sheriff Troy Wolverson and approved retaining a full-time deputy position after a federal traffic-safety grant was not renewed.

Wolverson told the board an anonymous donor gave $300 for the sheriff’s honor guard and a family donated $100 in memory of Tammy Zarbuck designated to the canine unit; the board approved acceptance of both donations (resolutions referenced in the packet as 2576 and 2577). "I'd ask the board to accept those dollars to be designated to the honor guard," Wolverson said of the $300 donation.

Wolverson reported the county had staffed a deputy for three years using a DWI enforcement grant that reimbursed roughly $125,000 per year. "We applied for the grant and... we did not receive the grant money," he said. He proposed retaining the full-time deputy to provide a roving, uniformed presence at schools outside Alexandria during the school day and to conduct traffic-safety enforcement while traveling between towns. "Because the priority here would be school safety... I would look at... doing a percentage out of the drug forfeiture," Wolverson said, naming available funding sources: unspent one-time public safety aid (about $985,000) and drug/DUI forfeiture funds (about $260,000).

Commissioners asked whether the cost would change if the department were not bound by specific grant terms; Wolverson said it would remain a full-time position and therefore carry similar cost. After discussion a motion to retain the deputy, funded from the available public safety and forfeiture funds as discussed, was moved and carried.

The board’s votes accepting the donations and approving retention were recorded as carried during the meeting; no further detail on a multi-year funding commitment or formal budget amendment was included in the meeting record.