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Sheriff briefs commissioners on $70,000 3‑D scanner and warns FCC order on inmate services could cost county about $100,000 a year
Summary
Sheriff's office requested authority to bid a $70,000 3‑D imaging system for investigations and warned a new FCC order on inmate phones/tablets/visitation could impose about $99,000–$116,000 in annual costs to the jail unless the county secures short‑term budget relief or appeals.
The sheriff's office briefed the St. Clair County Commission on two operational items: a request to bid a 3‑D imaging system for forensic and architectural uses, and an update on a recent Federal Communications Commission order that changes who must pay for inmate phone, tablet and video visitation services.
Law‑enforcement staff said a portable 3‑D imaging/scanning system would assist crime scene documentation and courtroom presentation; the unit price is approximately $70,000, with maintenance and calibration costs estimated around $1,400 per year. The sheriff asked the commission to authorize a bid and noted training timelines of roughly 4–6 weeks after procurement. "We demoed one of these devices and we mapped our CID building and it only took 20 minutes to do the whole building," the office reported.
Separately, the sheriff warned that an FCC order could shift costs for inmate phone and visitation systems onto counties and jails. Staff estimated an immediate potential budget shortfall in the $99,000–$116,000 per year range for maintaining phone, tablet and video‑visitation services under the new rules and said a final appeal is pending. Options discussed to limit near‑term budget impact include temporary operational changes, exploring low‑cost pay phones, or identifying county funding to cover a portion of the loss while pursuing regional or federal advocacy.
Commissioners asked the sheriff's office to provide detailed cost data and requested a short meeting before the next work session to review options; no procurement authorization beyond 'permission to bid' was recorded during the session.
