Jackson Police Discover Body, Dash Cameras Are Leased After Unpaid Tax Bill
JACKSON - Jackson's police chief told the City Council the department only recently learned its body-worn and dash cameras are leased, not owned, after an unpaid tax bill on the equipment surfaced.
At an Aug. 19 city budget workshop, the chief said the discovery came through the finance office. "I just found out about this. The only reason I just found out about this, but if I'm correct, we leased that property and lease property has to be returned back in," the chief said, adding that the lease came to light "because I just received um notification from the CFO's office that we had not paid Huntington the personal property tax on our leased equipment."
The chief did not say when the outstanding invoice, reported near $13,000, would be resolved or whether the equipment would be returned or bought out at the lease's end.
The episode points to a gap in the department's oversight of its own contracts, leaving the city facing an unbudgeted tax bill and uncertainty over whether it will keep equipment officers currently use in daily operations. Council members were not recorded responding to the disclosure.