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Residents call for transparency as board says Oakland County drones are 911 search‑and‑rescue units, not surveillance
Summary
Public commenters challenged recent drone vendor decisions and contract costs; the board said the county uses 911 search‑and‑rescue drones, is beginning a trial with FLIR (FLAC in transcript) and Skydio, and pointed to a public transparency dashboard for deployments.
Public commenters at the Oakland County meeting pressed the board for more transparency around the sheriff’s drone program and questioned recent vendor amendments and contract costs.
Phil Lombard of Ferndale said the county’s drone costs have risen sharply: he told commissioners Axon provided a 2023 baseline of about $52,000 per year for hardware and training, three contract amendments have increased annual costs to just over…
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