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Police seek Axon contract funding after LPR grant rescinded; council told gap may affect budget
Summary
Police leaders asked the council to fund Axon body-camera and license-plate-reader (LPR) equipment after a state grant was withdrawn when the donated cameras were returned; the department estimated the full new contract at $42,550 per year before potential down-payment adjustments.
Chief Howard Greer and Captain (Interim) Robert Fisher presented the police budget request and equipment needs, including a renewed Axon contract that would cover tasers, body cameras and two proposed license-plate-reader (LPR) cameras.
Greer said the combined annual cost if fully subscribed would be about $42,550, and he outlined a plan to use remaining body-camera grant funds as a down payment to reduce annual payments over a multiyear contract. He told council members the department had received two LPR cameras through a state grant but returned those cameras when they proved inadequate (70-foot range) and said the state subsequently rescinded the funding for replacement 120-foot cameras.
"The minute Arnold sent them back, the state withdrew all funding and said we get nothing," Greer said, describing the grant reversal and the resulting gap in budgeted equipment funding.
Greer asked the council to consider funding the Axon contract and noted that a grant could lower the town’s long-term payments; the department will present more concrete numbers toward introduction once grant and down-payment options are clarified.
Councilmembers asked questions about overtime, staffing and possible mitigation through grants; decisions will be considered in the context of the broader general-fund deficit and other capital priorities.
