Excess property from DLA bolsters Appalachian law enforcement

A rural North Carolina county has publicly credited a federal surplus-equipment program with helping stretch limited law enforcement budgets and bolster emergency response, praising specific Defense Logistics Agency staffers in an open letter to its sitting congresswoman.

Ashe County Sheriff’s Office began using the Defense Logistics Agency’s Law Enforcement Support Office in 2018, said Sgt. Brian Blanco, the department’s property screener who also oversees the county’s school resource officer program. He singled out North Carolina’s governor-appointed state coordinators for federal excess property and DLA Disposition Services employees Jess Horvath at Camp Lejeune and Keneicsha Monroe at Fort Bragg, calling their support “immeasurable.”

“They answer emails within minutes, are always reachable by telephone for guidance and advice and their dedication is felt all the way over here in the High Country through the items they’ve been able to help me acquire for my deputies,” Blanco wrote.

Blanco detailed how donated military equipment has supported residents in the county of roughly 27,000. When the remnants of Hurricane Helene drenched the region in late September 2024 and a critical radio tower lost power, deputies used an excess military Polaris off-road vehicle to climb a mountain and restore emergency communications. Other items obtained include radio headsets for the SWAT team, cold-weather clothing for patrol, spotlights used in missing-person searches, and tool kits that deputies have used to help with minor home and vehicle repairs.

The office also picked up a Chevy Malibu from DLA’s Fort Jackson, South Carolina, site for officers to commute to training and to transport mental health commitments. During a 2023 budget crunch, it secured 33 unused Dell desktop computers from DLA’s Fort Bragg property site; they are now used by patrol officers, detectives and school resource officers for report writing, monitoring school security cameras and logging evidence.

“Ours is not a large law enforcement agency with deep pockets, able to immediately purchase any and all equipment that our deputies may need or want on the spot,” Blanco wrote. “Our agency prides itself on being fiscally responsible with our citizens’ tax dollars and so, when possible, we look for alternate methods to secure needed equipment. That’s where the 1033 Program and LESO have proven so valuable over the years.”

According to DLA Disposition Services, surplus military supplies and equipment with an original value of about $8.5 billion have been made available to communities and law enforcement in recent decades through the Law Enforcement Support Office under Section 1033 authority. Most excess property requested by eligible recipients is donated and includes items such as generators, floodlight kits, utility trailers, rigid inflatable boats and sump pumps that are no longer required for military missions but still have civilian utility. A smaller share is considered controlled property on loan — such as night-vision equipment or mine-resistant ambush protected vehicles — that must be returned when no longer needed.

For Ashe County, Blanco said, the pipeline of surplus gear has helped fill equipment gaps, sustain daily operations and support high-stakes emergency response without straining local taxpayers.