OVIEDO, Fla. – Monday evening, Oviedo City Council members are expected to vote on a consent agenda that includes purchasing 80 new Motorola radios for the Police Department.
Consent Agenda item #6, Purchase of Replacement Police Portable Radios, “is a request for City Council to approve the purchase of eighty (80) replacement radios and related equipment, the surplus of 80 police radios, and a budget amendment.”
The Oviedo Police Department currently has 80 Motorola portable radios, according to the agenda item.
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Fifty-six of the radios, the Motorola APX6000, purchased in 2013, “are no longer supported by Motorola, and replacement parts are no longer manufactured as of December 31, 2023.”
“The remaining supply of radios are the Motorola APX6000B radios and will be supported only as long as the current existing supply of parts is available, afterwhich, they will become obsolete,” the agenda item reads. “These radios were purchased in 2020.”
The Oviedo Police Department is looking to capitalize on cost savings and avoid a tariff surcharge.
“Motorola Solutions has announced that effective June 28, 2025, there is going to be a 10% price increase on their products as a result of the pending tariff policies of the U.S. government,” the agenda item reads. “The Police Department had intended to replace some of the radios in the current year and the remainder in the upcoming budget year, but in order to get ahead of the pending price increase, and to ensure the radios will continue to be supported by Motorola, the Police Department recommends replacing all portable radios in the current year. The projected useful life of the new radios is ten (10) years.”
The replacement radios, the Motorola APX NEXT, offers several advanced features:
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Seamless cellular network (LTE) switching
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On-device mapping
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Compatibility with the current Seminole County Emergency Telecommunication system
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Over the Air programming and provisioning
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Personal accountability
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Providing the incident commander with status of on-scene personnel and person down/impact detection.
“The cost to purchase eighty (80) Motorola APX NEXT portable radios is $907,135.20,” the agenda item reads. “Pricing was obtained through the State of Florida Department of Management Services Alternate Contract.”
At that price, each radio would cost $11,339.19, unless the total cost includes additional equipment purchases.
“The FY 2024/25 Budget includes $300,000 towards the purchase of the subject radios,” the agenda item reads. “Twenty-one (21) radios, totaling $187,964, will be purchased with Federal Forfeiture Funds (Fund 106). The remaining fifty-nine (59) radios, totaling $719,172, will be purchased with the General Fund as follows: $300,000 currently included in the FY 24/25 Budget, a re-allocation of budget within the Police Department of $174,000, and $245,172 from Fund Balance.”
Oviedo Police Department Deputy Chief Mike Beavers said since the first batch of older radios was purchased in 2013, the department has replaced the radio batteries several times. But the old radio itself is now old technology.
“What’s happening with us currently is this particular [old] radio, they’re getting ready to phase out,” Beavers said. “Motorola has informed us that when the current parts supply run out on these radios, they’re not going to support them anymore.”
Beavers said the police radio, more expensive that all of an officer’s gear combined, is the lifeline for the officer.
“It’s how we broadcast and receive information about what’s going on, you know, in and around the city,” Beavers said.
Beavers admitted spending nearly $1 million on police radios is a lot of money, especially when the department has struggled for years to secure funding from taxpayers to replace its aging and cramped police department headquarters.
“It’s always a big ask,” Beavers said. “But, you know, what price are you going to put on officer safety? Like I said, it is the the the connection. It’s the lifeline that we have.”
The Orlando Police Department purchased the same police radio, the APX NEXT, for all officers in 2022.
You can watch the Council Meeting beginning at 6:30pm here.
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