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Sheriff flags dispatch technology replacement, vehicle and wage costs in budget review
Summary
Lincoln County’s sheriff told commissioners Motorola dispatch consoles are end-of-life and recommended buying new consoles and recording capacity; staff also discussed vehicle purchases, two planned retirements and wage-line increases that will raise the sheriff’s office preliminary budget.
The sheriff told Lincoln County commissioners during a budget review that the department needs to replace Motorola dispatch consoles that are now "end of life" and no longer supported, and asked for funding to buy new consoles and a recorder to expand station recording capacity.
The recommendation matters because the sheriff said the Motorola systems will not continue to receive operating-system support and that the county must move to consoles that interoperate with neighboring radio systems. "When I first took office... Motorola won't support the operating system that they have anymore," the sheriff said. He added that switching to a Harris or Bosch console would allow the county to talk across systems rather than remain tied to Motorola.
Beyond the technology request, staff reviewed vehicle purchases and wage-line changes. Finance numbers discussed at the meeting showed a $6,000 change on one wage line and a series of smaller adjustments across other pay lines; officials also accounted for two planned retirements — Dwayne Rhodes and Bill Pittman — in the wages projection. Participants noted roughly $70,000 in carryover that preceded a recent vehicle purchase and upfit for animal control.
Commissioners and staff also discussed detention and professional-services costs, restitution challenges for facility damage, and an accounting quirk in fuel payments caused by WEX charges posted to the wrong line in a prior year. On detention costs, presenters said individual repairs can be costly but restitution is difficult when staff cannot identify a responsible inmate from camera coverage.
No formal motions or votes were taken on the sheriff’s requests at this meeting. Commissioners said they will fold the sheriff’s requests into the broader county budget process and will continue discussing elected-official salary issues and technology funding as budget work proceeds.
The budget review will continue in subsequent county budget meetings as staff refine final numbers and bring formal proposals back to the commission.
