Sheriff’s office to get more cruisers

Jackson County Sheriff Lou Roberts will soon have some new patrol cars on the road. The Jackson County Commission decided Tuesday to try a new approach to fleet updates.
Roberts will get 10 new fully equipped, ready-for-the road vehicles under a lease-purchase agreement that begins with a cost of $96,122 in the 2008-09 fiscal year. That money had been committed to fleet updates before Roberts officially took office.
In 2009-10, the department will pay $95,697, and in 2010-11, it will pay $95,707. At the end of the lease periods on each vehicle, Roberts can buy them for $1 per car, after having already paid $28,752.60 for each.
Roberts also wanted the board to commit to another round of lease-purchase agreements for six additional cars. But the commissioners said they’d rather wait and see how the initial deal works and to see how their future budgets shape up.
The initial payment of $95,697 could have been used to purchases four new cars outright, for $23,924.25 apiece. But Roberts said he felt the money would be better used in leasing to buy the 10, instead.
Commissioners said they felt comfortable with the three-year program since the commission typically expects to pay a similar amount to update the sheriff’s fleet each year.
In other county commission actions Tuesday related to the sheriff’s office, the board agreed to renew contracts that give three entities a dedicated deputy assigned to their areas of the county.
Alford, Campbellton and Compass Lake in the Hills will each pay the deputy’s salary,  health insurance and benefits, and for the fuel it takes to operate his cruiser, among other expenses.
Alford will pay $50,058 per year, in monthly installments of $41,171. The deputy will work there 42.5 hours a week. His schedule will be set by the town and the sheriff’s patrol captain.
Compass Lake in the Hills will pay $46,878 per year, in monthly installments of $3,906. The vehicle fuel is not included in their total. The deputy’s schedule will be a four-day stretch of 8.5 hour days, with two days off.
Campbellton is getting an officer assigned to it at an annual cost of $50.058, to be paid in monthly installments of $4,171. The deputy will work a 42.5 hour week, and the contract includes salary, benefits and fuel costs.
The sheriff also got approval to provide eight school resource officers to the Jackson County School Board at a cost of $309,997, to be paid by the school system. That represents 75 percent of the officers’ salaries and part of the fuel costs for his vehicle, and will be paid in 12 monthly increments of $25,831. 
Documents associated with these contracts did not specify to which schools the resource officers would be assigned.
Roberts also gained approval from the county commission to purchase equipment.
The sheriff will take $7,578 from his contraband forfeiture fund to pay for five walkie-talkies for his officers, and five Glock service weapons. The walkie-talkies cost $5,203, and the guns $2,375.
Roberts also got approval to spend $40,000 from a special technology fund to install repeaters in Sneads and Graceville. These will improve communication between deputies as they work in the field. A third repeater could be funded later for the Malone area.