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Glendive council approves applying for federal body‑camera grant for police
Summary
The council voted to allow the police department to apply for a Bureau of Justice Assistance small rural tribal body‑worn camera grant that requires a 1:1 match; councilors approved pursuing the grant while staff will complete vendor quotes and cost estimates before accepting funds.
The Glendive City Council on Feb. 3 voted to allow the police department to apply for a Bureau of Justice Assistance small rural tribal body‑worn camera grant that requires a 1:1 local match.
Assistant Chief (name not given) told the council the department currently uses body cameras but they are aging and unreliable: “They’re just being outdated, and we’re having a lot of issues with them maintaining service and sending them back for repairs quite often,” the Assistant Chief said. He said the department plans to request 11 body cameras and roughly six in‑car systems if the grant is available.
The Assistant Chief described vendor price differences the department has seen in preliminary research: WatchGuard body cameras have lasted three to five years but were quoted in the range of $3,500–$4,000 per camera; Axon body cameras were quoted around $3,000; and a vendor named ProVision provided a preliminary quote with an in‑car system near $3,000 and body cameras near $500 each. He cautioned that service agreements and cloud storage create recurring monthly charges beyond the purchase price.
Director of operations (name not given) confirmed the Bureau of Justice Assistance grant requires a dollar‑for‑dollar match and said the city may be able to use in‑kind staff time as part of that match. He noted previous grant matches reported to the council around $38,000 and said cloud‑management workload could amount to the equivalent of roughly half a full‑time staff position in ongoing review and maintenance.
Councilors debated whether to approve applying rather than committing to purchase; Acting chair (filling in) said the council’s approval would authorize the department to finish quotes and bring specific cost and brand information back before any out‑of‑pocket commitment. “If it came back and at the end, we had to put 50 of out of pocket cash into it, the council has the opportunity to say, no,” the acting chair said.
The council approved the motion to allow the police department to apply for the grant. The vote was taken after discussion; the acting chair stated “the ayes have it.” The council did not accept or approve any specific vendor or expenditure tonight.
Next steps: staff will solicit vendor quotes, finalize total cost and match details, and return to the council with a full funding decision if the grant is awarded.
