SANDPOINT — The Bonner County Sheriff’s Office took the cake at Tuesday’s business meeting, with the most items up for approval by county commissioners, seeking approval to purchase a handful of motor vehicles and other operational equipment.  

Bonner County commissioners faced a stacked agenda Tuesday, with 17 items up for approval from county departments, outside of discussions on the meeting’s consent agenda. Of those items, the sheriff’s office had six, with one to be discussed during an executive session.  

All purchase requests by the department were approved unanimously by county commissioners. 

The sheriff’s office was first approved to purchase engines for two 2021 Chevrolet Tahoes after their original engines became inoperable. Replacements will be purchased from Jasper Engines and Transmissions for $12,810.  

Wheeler said the vehicles had reached just past 100,000 miles before the engines stopped working, noting that the cost of a new engine was more effective than purchasing a new vehicle altogether. He also said the warranty on the new engines, 18 months or 100,000 miles, exceeded any other warranty found on those engines. 

The department was also approved to purchase a 2026 Chevrolet Silverado Trail Boss for $50,542 and three 2026 Chevrolet Silverados for $148,758.10. The purchase of these vehicles is necessary for filling first responder spots in the BCSO fleet, according to a memorandum from the department.  

Sheriff Daryl Wheeler said that it would be ideal to purchase Silverado Trail Boss vehicles for all the fleet vehicles due to their clearance capabilities and added enhancements. However, due to the high desirability of the vehicles, the sheriff’s office said a regular Silverado remains adequate for the department’s needs. 

The purchase of 911 repeaters was also approved, along with a transfer of funds from the sheriff’s office budget to support the repeaters. The purchase of the repeaters will replace current ones and will be used to extend the range of 911 call signals.  

Details on the purchase are confidential and were not disclosed during the public meeting.  

To finish the laundry list of requests, the sheriff’s office was approved to provide certification pay for eligible employees who received applicable certification for their role within the sheriff’s office.  

The department brought forth concerns after Wheeler noted the obligation to pay POST certification pay to eligible sheriff’s office employees. The issue, however, was that a specific dollar amount wasn’t allocated for POST certification pay in the 2026 budget, where all pay increases required approval from the Board of County Commissioners. 

Commissioners unanimously approved the request.