REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
February 25, 2025
FROM
TRACY REECE, Chief Probation Officer, Probation Department
SUBJECT
Title
Contract with Axon Enterprise, Inc. for Purchase of Taser 10 Certification Program
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve contract with Axon Enterprise, Inc., for the purchase of Taser 10 Certification Program for a total amount not to exceed $3,514,960 for the period of February 26, 2025, through December 30, 2029.
(Presenter: Tracy Reece, Chief Probation Officer, 387-5692)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Operate in a Fiscally-Responsible and Business-Like Manner.
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The contract costs of $3,514,960 is funded with Proposition 172. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Probation Department’s (Department) 2024-25 budget and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Since 2014, Department’s safety personnel have been issued handheld Conducted Energy Weapons (CEW’s), manufactured by Axon (formerly Taser International, Inc.), to provide a less lethal option to subdue combative subjects. Department safety personnel upgraded to a newer version in 2019.
Approval of this recommendation will allow the Department to deploy the Taser 10 platform, Axon’s most current model CEW, which includes notable upgraded safety features, such as increased deployment range to create more time and space to de-escalate and resolve conflicts, and advancements in accuracy, effectiveness, and reliability. After the CEW’s were deployed in 2016, the Department’s safety personnel have been issued and trained with Axon’s devices, and transitioning to the newest model will require minimum additional training.
Through Axon’s Certification Program, the Department will receive 500 Taser 10 CEW’s, 16 Taser 10 Spare CEW’s, 20 Taser 10 virtual reality simulation devices, unlimited duty cartridges, annual training cartridges, accessories, maintenance, training, and software integration and access to Axon’s Evidence.com to manage CEW activity and event logs, for the contract period of February 26,2025, through December 30, 2029.
On October 22, 2024 (Item No 53), the Board of Supervisors (Board) approved Contract No. 24-987, which is Axon’s Master Services and Purchasing Agreement, including a non-standard term, for the Sheriff’s Department to purchase the Taser 10 platform. The recommended contract incorporates the same terms and conditions already approved by the Board in Axon’s Master Services and Purchasing Agreement, including the non-standard term, which terminates the contract on December 30, 2029. The recommended item will create a new contract with Axon for Probation to purchase the Taser 10 platform.
PROCUREMENT
Axon is the manufacturer of the Taser 10 CEW and related Taser 10 Certification Program with VR, the Certification Program with VR and all related equipment, software integration, and access, accessories, training and maintenance support services provided, are only available for purchase through Axon. Although there are other CEW models on the market, those are more for personal use by private citizens, and not Department safety personnel. The Purchasing Department supports this non-competitive procurement.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Probation (Thomas Kamara, Director of Probation Administration, 387-9631) on January 27,2025; County Counsel (Maria Insixiengmay, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on January 28 , 2025; Purchasing (Ariel Gill, Supervising Buyer, 387-2065) on January 29,2025; Risk Management (Gregory <mailto:DRMpositivenotice@rm.sbcounty.gov> Ustaszewski, Staff Analyst 386-9008) on January 30, 2025; Finance (Iliana Rodriguez, 387-4205; Erika Rodarte, 387,4919 Administrative Analysts) on February 3, 2025; and County Finance and Administration (Valerie Clay, Deputy Executive Officer, 387-5423) on February 4, 2025.