In the county's latest effort to save on fuel costs, a new policy handed down by the county executive and police chief asks officers to hit the street with more foot patrols and turn off the air conditioning in their police cruisers.
The policy, announced yesterday by County Executive John R. Leopold and Police Chief James Teare Sr., also told officers to cut weight from patrol cars by removing extra equipment, avoid idling except at stoplights and, when possible, to carpool to training seminars and crime scenes.
The officers, however, still get to...
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AC - 2008-07-11 13:44:04
I agree with Jeffrey turn off the ac in the couty office building see how they like! I bet it wont last a week.
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Melissa Collins - North Beach, MD - Karma: Neutral
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Red Vest - 2008-07-09 20:09:41
LOL I have never seen the photos so Im not sure. I just think Leopold is doing a good job and I have a lot of respect for the man. I would just like for everyone on here to stop bashing him. The county has a lot of problems financially that were left, he didnt create these problems but is trying to solve them.
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M Davis - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Dollars before sense.. - 2008-07-09 15:53:19
M Davis - You protest too much.
Mr. Leopold puts dollars before sense.
And what is it with those creepy photos of him in the red vest kissing Francois Rabelais?
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sean harmion - annapolis, MD - Karma: Neutral
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SLOW DOWN USE A/C - 2008-07-09 07:41:39
All the police have to do is slow down. This would conserve quite a lot of fuel, I do under stand when responding to a serious call they must increase speed but I hardly ever see a county police car doing the speed limit on duty or off.Maybe limit off duty use of some the police cars slow down use the A/C .This is not going to help with an already dysfunctional police department. I know if I worked for this department I would be looking elsewhere for a job.
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FRED D. - CROWNSVILLE, MD - Karma: Neutral
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OH and by the way - 2008-07-08 23:07:58
If you think any jurisdiction in Maryland spends three quarters of their budget on Education you are living in a dream world. If that was the case, you wouldnt see the all the outdated and overcrowded schools in the county. Ignorance is bliss...
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M Davis - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Sorry you are wrong - 2008-07-08 21:42:09
I took that quote right out of another article the Capital wrote two weeks ago about the deficit. So if Im wrong so is the Capital. Research and see how much money the county is paying retirees. What you find might surprise you. And by the way Harmion, like I said get educated. I personally know of the cuts the county has made and all the work Mr. Leopold has done to fix the county's budget woes. This article is just a small example. And noone asked the officers to keep the A/C off, just to turn it on when going over 55 MPH. If you had read the whole article you would know that. And Leopold spineless huh?? Well I think it takes alot of spine make the necessary changes that might not be so popular. But I guess you would be happier if he put blinders on and swept all the problems under the rug and just raised taxes like the rest of the politicians do. At least he didnt spend thousands of dollars putting his name in bronze plaques at the county lines like Janet Owens did.
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M Davis - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent
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M. Davis - 2008-07-07 14:57:23
Sorry....but three quarters of the 1.22 billion dollar budget went to the Board of Education. Also, if Police officers have to live without AC, then so should every County owned vehicle being driven, starting with YOU KNOW WHO!
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Debbie F. - Arnold, MD - Karma: Neutral
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Penny Wise-pound foolish - 2008-07-04 10:49:01
M. Davis - You do not have a lock on being "educated".
Being penny wise and pound foolish will not solve the county's revenue challenge.
Mr. Leopold lacks then spine to either make the required cuts or lift the tax cap so instead he showboats by beating on our cops.
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sean harmion - annapolis, MD - Karma: Neutral
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Clueless?? - 2008-07-04 00:05:43
The county executive is clueless?? How about the county is broke and he is trying to cut corners anyway he can in order to keep the county from drowning. And to avoid raising taxes in the process. His predecessors left us in a huge financial mess. "While most of the private sector has switched to defined-contribution retirement plans such as a 401(k), the county promises new employees traditional pensions and to cover 80 percent of health care costs after retirement. More than three-quarters of the county's $1.22 billion annual budget pays employees or retirees, and the gap between tax revenues and expenses next year alone is estimated at $15.5 million". And more and more county workers are retiring every year, since many of these jobs offer a twenty year retirement. Yes, maybe the A/C thing is an extreme measure, but do some research on the very real financial mess we are in instead of pointing the finger at the county exec. If you open your eyes and get educated on the matter, you will see what is really going on here and how we got into this mess to begin with. And what needs to be done to get us out of it.
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M Davis - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Frivolous - 2008-07-03 19:08:39
They wouldn't have exceeded their budget if the police officers wifes and children didn't drive their MARKED police car to pick up dinner. The 13 year old girl was sitting in the front seat and they both got out of the car, picked up their food and left.I can't tell you how many times I have seen a police car driven by what looked like a spouse and her child. I didn't know police officers were allowed to use marked police cars for personal use. I guess I was mistaken. On the subject of not using ac in the car when they are on duty... who is supposed to supervise the use of ac. Are the cops going to be on the honor system? I don't think so.. They do work hard and deserve to have air conditioning when they are working. Thats that.
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tiffany clarke - Glen burnie, MD - Karma: Neutral
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Stupid Way to Save Money - 2008-07-03 18:16:57
Again Mr. Leopold puts dollars before sense.
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sean harmion - annapolis, MD - Karma: Neutral
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Wow - 2008-07-02 22:57:20
I thought we were dumb here, but this takes the cake. Impalas are junk, you save maybe 3 mpg, but have to buy new ones quicker, and the AC? Please. Sitting in a bullet proof vest all day..heat stroke anyone? Clearly the county exec does not know what it is like to be a cop, and he is pandering to some person who probably called in to complain about his officer's enjoying too much AC.
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No a/c? A foolish policy - 2008-07-02 21:43:06
This taxpayer thinks use of a/c for police officers is a responsible use of his dollars. End this short-sighted policy.
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Chris Flohr - Severna Park, MD - Karma: Neutral
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A/C for cops - 2008-07-02 17:14:49
Once again the powers that be have confirmed my thoughts that they are clueless. It is a proven fact that the drag on a vehicle with it's windows down while moving uses more gas than one with closed windows and the a/c on. To the officers of the county I send my regrets that your chief and county exec are fiscal dumb asses. Stay cool men!
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Billy SMITH - Cocoa Beach, FL - Karma: Neutral
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Comment removed by HometownAnnapolis staff. - 2008-07-02 16:29:23
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Cops Air Conditioning - 2008-07-02 13:56:50
I surely hope that the a/c in the county office building are being turned off to coserve energy as well. A police car is a police officers office. I would be willing to bet that Leopold's office is nice and cool. What a joke. Give these guys what they deserve for keeping the citizens a safe place to live.
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Jeffrey Lewis - Edgewater, MD - Karma: Neutral
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