Sheriff asks committee to seek $1.25 million in grants for narcotics and traffic units; some legislators worry about long‑term costs

Sheriff Scott Ciserella told the Allegany County Public Safety Committee on June 3 that he wants the county to apply for two grants that together total $1.25 million to create a dedicated narcotics enforcement unit and a traffic enforcement/highway safety position.

Ciserella said the Bureau of Justice Assistance application would support a dedicated narcotics enforcement and interdiction team, funding two full‑time deputies plus part‑time staff, equipment and vehicles. “If all of this saves one life, one kid that decides not to get behind the wheel after having a drink, it’s all worth it,” he said when describing the public‑safety rationale behind the requests and the community response to drug‑related incidents.

He told members the narcotics proposal responds to local indicators: since 2020 the county has recorded 217 drug overdoses and 41 deaths the department attributes to illegal drugs, and first responders administered naloxone in the field 164 times in the same period. The sheriff said letters of support from local police chiefs and the New York State Police accompanied the application materials.

Several legislators supported seeking the grant but expressed concern about long‑term costs if the county must retain positions after the three‑year funding period. “We can’t afford everything,” said Mr. Chun, who raised fiscal and policy concerns and voted against the application; other members urged planning to phase in any county share and to identify possible funding sources to sustain positions after federal support ends.

The sheriff said he had intended to ask the board for a sustainability plan regardless of grant outcomes and that applying now would allow the county to seek federal support and then return to the board to hammer out the details if awarded funding.

The committee voted to authorize the sheriff to apply for both grants. The vote to apply for the $600,000 Bureau of Justice Assistance narcotics grant carried with recorded opposition; members also approved applying for a $650,000 Justice Reinvestment Initiative grant to fund a traffic enforcement and highway safety position to reduce crashes and DWI‑related injuries.

Next steps: the sheriff will submit the grant applications; acceptance of any award would require a separate board resolution to appropriate funds and detail how the county will meet staffing obligations after the grant period.