Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Procurement Police Fleet topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Milton council rejects $240,000 police vehicle purchase after questions about bids and hybrid options
Summary
After a long debate over using a state bid versus local dealers and whether hybrid or electric patrol cars were viable, the Milton City Council failed to approve the purchase of three police vehicles — a motion to spend up to $240,000 and authorize the mayor to sign was defeated in a roll-call vote.
Assistant Chief Champagne asked the Milton City Council on Feb. 2 to approve the purchase of three police vehicles under the existing amortization schedule and to authorize the mayor to sign purchase documents. "The total with the upfitting comes to 240,000, is estimated," Assistant Chief Champagne said during the presentation.
Council members spent more than an hour questioning the purchase process, the choice to purchase off a state contract with an out-of-area dealer and whether hybrid or electric vehicles should be considered. Council member Cedar pressed staff on the mix of vehicles and why the quotes were for non-hybrid gas engines despite a linked spec sheet that included a hybrid model. "I've been asking about hybrid vehicles for 5 years now," Cedar said. "I just don't understand why we have this discussion every year," she added, urging staff to produce data.
Staff explained the choice of a state bid contract was to rely on a vetted procurement process and to ensure audit compliance. Assistant Chief Champagne and staff said the quoted vehicles come with some police equipment and must then be upfitted — staff estimated roughly $20,000 per vehicle in upfitting costs, which contributed to the $240,000 overall figure.
The council also debated reliability concerns raised about hybrid and electric models. Champagne said those concerns reflected conversations with the fleet manager, who cited examples of transmission or battery issues in some models, while Cedar and others asked for hard data from the fleet manager rather than anecdote. "I won't support this until I can speak to someone, either the fleet manager who had actual data or someone else who can justify not moving to a hybrid platform," Cedar said.
When council members called for a vote, the mayor ordered a recorded roll-call. The recorded votes were: Council member Whelan — Aye; Council member Hall — Aye; Council member Cedar — No; Council member Mounts — No; Council member Ternus — No; Council member Roberts — No. The motion failed. Staff and council acknowledged the item can be brought back with additional documentation and put on a future workshop or meeting agenda for more detailed information, including a detailed itemization of the upfitting estimate and fleet-manager data on hybrid reliability.
What happens next: The motion failed, but staff said they could return with a more detailed breakdown of upfitting costs and procurement options; council members suggested bringing the topic to a workshop or the next regular meeting for further review.
