To: Board of Supervisors
From: Esa Ehmen-Krause, County Probation Officer
Report Title: BSCC JAG purchase - TruNarc
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Purchasing Agent to execute, on behalf of the County Probation Officer, a purchase order, containing modified indemnification language, with Thermo Scientific Portable Analytical Instruments, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $130,514 for the purchase of drug testing equipment.
FISCAL IMPACT:
This expenditure will be 100% funded by The Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) U.S. Department of Justice Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program (JAG) fund.
BACKGROUND:
In August 2025, the Board of Supervisors approved the Office of the Sherriff’s submission of a one-time grant in the amount of $897,915 with the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) as the designated State Administering Agency for the U.S. Department of Justice Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program. This authorized the Sheriff-Coroner, or designee, to apply for and accept grant funding on behalf of several law enforcement departments, including the Probation Department. The JAG program funds are to be used for the following: the JAG Equipment and Training Program, for support of countywide law enforcement programs, prosecution and court programs, prevention and education programs, drug treatment and enforcement programs, mental health programs and related law enforcement and corrections programs. The Probation Department wishes to use their allocated JAG funds towards a device that can scan for suspected controlled substances in a single, definitive test.
A purchase order with Thermo Scientific Portable Analytical Instruments, Inc. will allow the Department to utilize the TruNarc system. This system provides a safer way to test over 530 highest priority illicit and abused narcotics such as heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl in a single drug test. The substance is scanned directly through plastic or glass for most drug test samples to minimize contamination, reduce exposure, and preserve evidence. TruNarc is a hand-held system that can be utilized both in the field and in a custodial setting. Acquiring this technology allows for immediate identification of harmful substances, allowing for instant identification to ensure the safety of officers. Micro amounts of certain narcotics absorbed through skin, or accidentally ingested can cause immediate overdoses and deaths, and TruNarc will reduce the risk of exposure and increase the safety of officers. Additional benefits of TruNarc tests are that they do not require direct contact with most substances; they deliver clear, real-time results for presumptive evidence, and provide automated, tamper-proof records with scan results which include time-and-date stamps.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
Disapproval of this purchase would significantly increase the risk to officer safety by requiring continued reliance on traditional field testing methods that involve direct contact with potentially lethal narcotics.