Friday, February 6, 2026 |
Photo – CCSO logo – Bigfoot99 file photo
County officials authorized $109,000 to purchase new Tasers for the sheriff’s office.
During Tuesday’s Board of Carbon County Commissioners meeting, Sheriff Alex Bakken requested permission to buy 20 Axon‑brand Tasers. Sheriff Bakken said the new equipment will replace his inventory of aging and broken units.
Sheriff Bakken said the purchase was included in his annual budget request. When he asked to buy the devices earlier in the year, the Board told him to check back halfway through the fiscal year, in January. The sheriff said that when he first sought approval in June, the quote was $106,692; adjusted for six months of inflation, the cost is now $109,188. The purchase includes everything deputies need to become and remain Taser‑certified, and Axon will provide replacement cartridges.
According to Axon, the Taser 10 fires 10 electrified probes. Any two can form a circuit. If more than two make contact with the suspect, the device automatically uses up to four of the strongest connections to produce neuromuscular incapacitation.
As well as the Tasers, Sheriff Bakken said the purchase will give him access to Evidence.com, Axon’s cloud‑based management platform. The sheriff said information stored on the site will allow him to track when and how long a Taser was activated.
Sheriff Bakken said the total cost can be spread over five years at $21,877.60 annually. The Board of Commissioners agreed that the new Tasers were needed for officer safety but debated whether to pay the $109,188 in full or finance the purchase. Commissioner John Espy said additional property‑tax relief bills may make buying the equipment outright the wiser choice.
Sheriff Bakken said Axon offers many different Taser packages across a wide range of prices. The sheriff said he chose the lowest‑priced items that still met his department’s needs.
When asked if he received quotes from other suppliers, Sheriff Bakken said Axon is effectively the only Taser provider on the market. Consequently, the Board would need to waive its policy requiring multiple quotes and the selection of the lowest bidder.
The Board of Carbon County Commissioners unanimously voted to buy 20 new Axon Tasers and training equipment for a one‑time cost of $109,188. Since Axon is the sole vendor, the Board also waived its standard procurement policy.
