Acushnet Police Chief Presents FY27 Budget With Deputy, Dispatcher, New Firearms Requests

ACUSHNET -- March 19, 2026, Acushnet's new police chief brought an expansive list of staffing and equipment needs to the Finance Committee, warning the department cannot sustain current operations without a deputy chief. The chief, presenting his first budget before the committee, requested funding for a fifth dispatcher to eliminate chronic mandatory overtime, cited an active two-person civil service eligibility list for deputy chief pending Board of Selectmen appointment, and outlined anticipated special articles for new 9mm handguns estimated at $35,000 to $40,000, seven replacement defibrillators at approximately $12,000, a 911 recorder at $15,000, and a dispatch-area HVAC replacement. He also flagged an expiring taser contract with a replacement cost quoted at $120,000 to $125,000 for a five-year program and described body cameras, which the department does not currently have, as a future priority requiring union contract negotiations. The Finance Committee also received the library's FY27 budget, built around the state's mandatory Municipal Appropriation Requirement of $309,137; even the bare-bones Request B scenario, at $249,629, clears that threshold and preserves the library's $33,476 in annual state aid.