Receive and file the Yolo County Sheriff's Office draft military equipment use policy. (No general fund impact) (Pogledich)

Receive and file the Yolo County Sheriff's Office draft military equipment use policy.

Enacted last year, Assembly Bill 481 requires law enforcement agencies to submit a proposed military equipment use policy and ordinance to their respective local agency governing boards. This process must commence by May 1, 2022 and conclude with adoption of the policy by ordinance no more than 180 days later. Consistent with these requirements and in the interests of transparency, the draft policy attached to this staff report will be presented as a regular agenda item at a subsequent Board meeting with an accompanying ordinance for Board consideration and public feedback.
 
There is some indication that AB 481 was intended to apply only to equipment actually used by the military. The Sheriff’s Office has no such equipment.  However, many agencies are interpreting AB 481 broadly to include certain general types of equipment customarily maintained by local law enforcement agencies that fall within the categories listed in AB 481, even if such equipment is not actually purchased from the military or suppliers to the military. For these reasons, the Sheriff's Office has coordinated with the Office of the County Counsel to develop and present the attached draft policy in compliance with AB 481. Upon approval, the policy will be included within the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office Policy Manual as Policy 709-Military Equipment (“Policy 709”). It has been published, and available to the public, on the Sheriff’s Office’s website since April 1, 2022. 

No Board action is presently required. As mentioned above, the draft policy will return for consideration with an accompanying ordinance at a future Board meeting.