Commissioners approve five‑vehicle fleet lease agreement subject to county attorney review

The Board moved to authorize a five‑vehicle unified fleet agreement for the sheriff’s office, with approval conditioned on county‑attorney review. Sheriff Thornton and the vendor explained that the lease would reduce up‑front capital outlay and that the vendor offers resale handling for turned‑in vehicles; commissioners focused on residual balance exposure if resale prices fall short of the remaining finance balance.

The sheriff described operational advantages of a three‑year lease cycle and the vendor representative (Michael) said the firm would provide sale estimates and would not take commissions on the county’s traded vehicles if the county replaced its fleet through the lease program. Commissioners expressed concern about the county’s residual risk and asked the sheriff to have the county attorney review the contract before final execution. The motion to approve the agreement subject to attorney review was moved, seconded, and carried with aye votes recorded; no specific dollar value was recorded on the floor during the motion.