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Sheriff’s investigators ask Spokane County to raise petty cash, approve DOJ grant application for interdiction unit
Summary
Spokane County undersheriff and lieutenant asked the board to raise investigative petty cash to $20,000 to support timely undercover buys and to authorize applying for a Bureau of Justice Assistance grant to fund an interdiction detective, a canine handler and equipment; staff said the grant request would be about $1.2 million with no local match.
Spokane County undersheriff Sean Walter and Lieutenant Rob Sataki told the county commissioners on May 5 that detectives with the Spokane Valley and county investigative units need more on‑hand petty cash to make timely purchases for undercover operations and evidence. Sataki said the petty cash fund, reported in the briefing as currently very small, was requested to be increased to $20,000 so detectives are not hamstrung while county reimbursement through Workday and the auditor’s office can take one to two weeks.
"Right now, it is at, $13.05, and we're requesting to go up to $20,000," Lieutenant Rob Sataki said, noting the increase of detectives and occasional back‑to‑back weeks of larger reimbursements. He told commissioners the cash is drawn from seizure accounts tied to drug investigations and is used for controlled buys and purchases of information and evidence.
Separately, the sheriff’s office asked the board to approve applying for a federal Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) grant to expand interdiction capacity. Staff described a package the county would request that includes one dedicated interdiction detective FTE, one canine handler and a narcotics detection canine, training and certification costs, additional overtime for task‑force personnel, a handheld backscatter X‑ray imager and wearable covert cameras.
County staff said they would request roughly $1.2 million within a category that has a $1.6 million ceiling and that the grant carries no required local match; staff also said 50% indirect costs were built into the request. The performance period would begin June 1, 2026, and run for about 36 months.
When commissioners asked whether process changes at the auditor or finance offices could speed reimbursements instead of raising petty cash, Sataki said the county’s increased number of detectives and frequent purchases mean having a larger on‑hand amount provides necessary flexibility for timely operations. He also said staff will look for other grant sources and try to absorb positions through attrition if grant funding does not continue.
The board did not take an immediate vote in the briefing; staff said they would return the request on a legislative agenda item or as a resolution as appropriate.
