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Police budget highlights drone program, field fingerprinting and new investigative tools funded largely by grants

Oro Valley Town Council · May 4, 2026
AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Summary

Chief Riley presented a police budget that reduces personnel costs due to pension funding changes, highlights $1M+ in grant revenue, and includes a $145K grant-funded drone-as-first-responder program, $20K on-site fingerprinting, a $67K Peregrine investigative license and planned radio upgrades.

Police Chief Riley presented the Oro Valley Police Department's recommended FY27 budget and supplemental programs during the council's May 4 study session. Riley said the department's personnel line is lower next year largely because of lower excess PSPRS contributions after actuarial funding improved, while operations and grant-funded projects increase.

On new operational programs, Commander Young and Commander Gracie outlined specific items. Commander Gracie emphasized the drones-as-first-responder initiative, saying it will "improve our operational awareness" and "improve our response times." Staff reported the drone program cost at about $145,000 and that it is funded through a state grant; Gephardt and…

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