Fiscal Note
No appropriation is required. The administrative requirements will be accommodated with existing staff resources.
Title
Establishing a voluntary handgun purchase program to allow Police commissioned employees to purchase a department-approved Glock firearm for duty use, utilize the Department's bulk purchasing power to order the handguns, and establish a repayment mechanism by which the cost of the firearm would be recovered through thirteen (13) equal deductions taken from the employee's paychecks
Body
WHEREAS, the Police Department currently has more than 180 officers who own a Glock .40 caliber firearm for duty use, with approximately 40% of them who utilize the firearm equipped with a Weapon Mounted Light (WML); and,
WHEREAS, the Department has determined the .40 caliber Glock handguns are very susceptible to ammunition feeding malfunctions when utilizing a WML; and,
WHEREAS, the Chief has determined that all WMLs must be removed from .40 caliber Glock handguns (Models G22, G23 and G27) and the authorization for the use of WMLs with these models has been suspended, so that officers utilizing these firearms will need to rely on handheld flashlights for illumination; and,
WHEREAS, the WML enhances an officer's ability to identify a target when the officer has justification to have their gun drawn, while still allowing the officer to keep one hand free if necessary; and,
WHEREAS, the Department believes it is both an issue of officer safety and its responsibility to allow officers to utilize a Glock firearms that are of reliable design to accommodate officer's existing WMLs; and,
WHEREAS, the Department currently utilizes a similar paycheck deduction system for the purchase of an officer's initial Glock handgun whereby the Department purchases the weapon on behalf of the recruit officer and then recovers the cost of the handgun through thirteen (13) equal deductions from the employee's paycheck.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that a one-time voluntary handgun purchase program is established to allow commissioned employees an opportunity to voluntarily purchase a Glock Model 17, 19, or 21 firearm for use; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department will purchase the handguns through its bulk purchasing authority and recover the cost of the handguns through thirteen (13) equal deductions taken from the employee's paychecks.