Eastern Shore Undercover Editorial: Worcester Approves Budget, Then Blocks Sheriff and Fire Marshal’s Vehicle Purchase

I want to talk about a vote that happened this week at the Worcester County Commission meeting.

Commissioners denied money for a side-by-side vehicle for the Worcester County Sheriff's Office and for the Worcester County Fire Marshal's Office, even though those vehicles were already approved in this year's budget.

The purchase was never challenged or removed when the budget was first approved. It only became a problem once the sheriff's office and fire marshal's office asked to actually spend the money.

Because the request is more than $25,000, there has to be a procurement process to actually make the purchase due to the amount of money being spent. The line budget item was approved in the budget.

However, this week, questions began, and denial took place, which does not allow either agency to purchase the needed vehicle.

The conversation began earlier this week at the Worcester County Commissioners Meeting with Commissioner Bunting asking Worcester County Sheriff's Office Lieutenant Chris Larmore if the sheriff's office already had four wheelers or ATVs. Larmore said they have two, but explained they serve a different purpose.

The ATVs that they currently have are used mainly for patrol. Larmore said they show up in parades, on the boardwalk, and on the beaches in Ocean City for off road work.

A side-by-side is different. It can carry up to four people and is mainly used to move equipment and people, not the same as what the ATVs are used for.

Larmore brought up last year's Ocean's Calling event, when deputies had a hard time getting water out to their STAR team. The Worcester County STAR team is the equivalent of a SWAT or QRT team, mainly used for higher-profile and more dangerous incidents.

He also described an older case where a missing person was found deep in the woods. In that case, deputies had to put the person on a four wheeler and walk alongside it to get the person out of the woods safely. A side-by-side would let deputies drive someone out instead, making the activity much safer for everyone involved.

After hearing those examples, Commissioner Bunting asked, "What is a negative of not having that?" I think Lieutenant Larmore was just as confused by the question as I was, and anyone who listened to this meeting.

Larmore had just explained the negative. Not being able to safely move someone who is injured out of the woods is the negative.

Commissioner Joe Mitrecic brought up the Ocean's Calling example again. He pointed out that Ocean City Has several of these vehicles, and he doesn't see a reason why the Worcester County Sheriff's Office should have to use one in Ocean City.

Here is the problem with that. The Ocean City Police Department no longer has its seasonal police program, so the town leans on outside agencies like the sheriff's office, the Maryland State Police, and Dept of Natural Resources Police to help during big events.

Mitrecic said he did not want taxpayers to pay for the vehicle. But again, the money was already approved in the budget so if he feels that way now, why wasn't this removed from the budget, when it was approved?

I have to ask what the point was of approving it in the budget in the first place, if commissioners were just going to turn around and deny it. That is not how budgeting is supposed to work.

Mitrecic also said that when he served on the Ocean City council, he voted against buying these kinds of vehicles. He said he still does not see the need for them.

Commissioner Eric Fiore disagreed. He said side-by-sides are standard equipment for public safety agencies across the country.

Fiore reminded the board that the sheriff's office was not asking for new money or even additional money. They were only asking to spend money already approved in their own budget.

Fiore added that if the vehicle helps save even one life or gets one person out of a bad situation, it is worth the cost and should be considered a bargain.

Bunting called for a vote to deny the purchase. The vote passed 6 to 1, with Fiore as the only commissioner supporting the sheriff's office.

Next up was a similar request from the Worcester County Fire Marshal's Office, also for a side-by-side. The office explained they do a lot of work out on Assateague dealing with unexploded ordnance, and the current vehicles take a beating from the sand and terrain.

A side-by-side would also help around the training center. This purchase was also already approved in the department's budget.

This time, there was no second to approve it and no second to deny it. Because neither motion got a second, no vote ever happened, and the vehicle will not be purchased.

Both of these vehicles were approved during the budget process. Then, when it came time to actually buy them, commissioners either voted no or let the request die without a vote.

I do not understand the logic here. If the county did not want to buy these vehicles, why approve the money for them in the first place. These types of vehicles would make deputies' jobs much easier especially during larger events like the Worcester County Fair, during the parades, the Christmas parade in Pocomoke, the Christmas parade in Berlin, any type of incident that would require them to go into the woods to retrieve someone.....the list goes on and on, but the fact is, the commissioners, for whatever reason, felt that these items were not necessary.