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Sheriff's office wins approvals for equipment purchases, commemorative badges and regional contracts
Summary
At a special Lincoln County Commissioners meeting, the sheriff requested and the board approved multiple purchase authorizations for patrol vehicle equipment and cameras, a $7,800 commemorative-badge purchase plan, a seasonal coverage contract with Boothbay Harbor and acceptance of a $5,000 highway safety grant; the board also renewed a $209,639.52 contract with MDEA.
The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners on voice votes approved a string of Sheriffs Office expenditures and contracts, including vehicle repairs and camera systems, a semiquincentennial badge purchase program, a seasonal coverage agreement with Boothbay Harbor and acceptance of additional highway-safety grant funds.
Sheriff (speaker 6) told the board the first item was a $5,149.07 repair bill to replace a hybrid battery on a cruiser and said hybrid vehicles give better fuel economy but are costly to repair. The board approved payment to Wiscasset Ford by voice vote.
The sheriff also sought authorization to buy in-car and body-camera systems from Motorola Solutions for $8,433 and to renew a related annual cloud subscription for $6,120 to store and retrieve footage. "We have some specialized [grant] funds that reimburse us for that and sometimes it comes with equipment," the sheriff said. Commissioners approved both items.
The board approved payment authorization of $39,004.47 for a 2026 Dodge Durango patrol vehicle. The sheriff said the vehicle would not be put into service until vendor installations (light bars, sirens, cameras) are complete and estimated the car could be on the road by October, subject to a statewide backlog of equipment installers.
Separately, commissioners approved a $5,745.40 purchase authorization for additional in-car camera units to modernize older systems and synchronize them with the departments newer body cameras.
On a ceremonial but budgeted request, the sheriff asked the board to authorize an upfront purchase of semiquincentennial badges totaling $7,800 (about $120 per badge), with deputies reimbursing roughly $5,800 through payroll; the sheriff said remaining setup and shipping costs would be absorbed from the uniform budget. The motion passed 3-0.
The board also authorized the county administrator to negotiate and sign a reduced contract with Boothbay Harbor for up to 16 hours a week of police coverage from July 1 to Oct. 30 to help the town through a seasonal staffing shortage. The sheriff said the county will post shifts for volunteers and that overtime would be used when gaps remain.
The sheriff asked the board to accept an additional $5,000 from the Bureau of Highway Safety for targeted traffic enforcement, which would raise available overtime funds for specialized enforcement to $14,900. "Traffic speed complaints are the single most common complaint that I receive," the sheriff said, noting the grant can also fund public-awareness campaigns and equipment such as radar units. The board authorized acceptance of the grant modification.
Finally, commissioners approved the annual renewal of a regional contract with Maine Drug Enforcement (MDEA) that reimburses Lincoln County for Sergeant Jason Peases regional duties. The contract runs July 1 through June 30, 2027, and the recorded contract amount was $209,639.52.
All motions tied to the Sheriffs Department were approved by voice votes recorded as passing unanimously (3-0).
