Grant money right on target for ammunition and vests for Burnet County Sheriff’s Office
CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF
BURNET — A National Rifle Association Foundation grant has armed Burnet County deputies and constables with resources for safety and training.
PHOTO: Burnet County Sheriff W.T. Smith (left) met Burnet County constables Mike Harnish of Precinct 1, Garry Adams of Precinct 2, Jimmy Ballard of Precinct 3 and Chris Jett of Precinct 4 at a Burnet shooting range Feb. 7 to distribute training resources, including ammunition purchased with a $6,517 grant provided by the National Rifle Association Foundation. Staff photo by Connie Swinney
A $6,517 grant allowed the Burnet County Sheriff’s Office to purchase ammunition as well as buy new body armor and ammunition for the constables.
“(Ballistics) vests have an expiration. They’re only good for a certain number of years. They have to be replaced,” Burnet County Sheriff W.T. Smith said. “Any kind of donation you get to mitigate the effect of higher cost of ammunition and vests is, of course, beneficial.”
Burnet County Precinct 4 Constable Chris Jett said a spike in the cost and availability of ammunition caused concern about training and proficiency requirements by the state.
“Just a box of .40-caliber ammo, the duty ammo, is almost a dollar a round, so a 50-round box of ammunition is pretty expensive,” Jett said. “Fortunately, through this grant, we’ve been able to get some ammunition for training.”
The funding will provide enough ammunition for one to two additional qualifications this year, officials said.
Officials distributed ammunition among constables Feb. 7. Three of the four lawmen were recently fitted for the body armor.
“With our limited budgets, it’s always nice to have that additional support,” Jett said.
connie@thepicayune.com