LaLota secures up to $5.3 million for Suffolk police vehicle upgrades

Up to $5.3 million in federal money is headed to Suffolk police fleets, with new vehicles and upfitted units slated for departments from East Hampton to Asharoken. The funding is meant to replace aging assets that have reached the end of their operational life, a shift that could cut maintenance costs and keep patrol cars on the road longer.

Rep. Nick LaLota said the vehicle money was secured through the FY2026 spending law signed Jan. 23, 2026, which included ten Community Project Funding items totaling $11,839,915 for Suffolk County. His office said the broader package delivered more than $429 million in federal funding for Suffolk County overall, with law enforcement, clean water and environmental protection among the categories funded.

Under the police-vehicle allocation, the Town of East Hampton is set to receive seven upfitted vehicles, while the Town of Riverhead will get four new marked vehicles. The Village of Asharoken, the Village of Head of the Harbor, the Village of Northport and the Village of Nissequogue are each listed for two vehicles. Together, that distribution accounts for 19 vehicles across six local governments.

A federal nexus letter tied to the project says Suffolk County has more than 1.5 million residents, the Suffolk County Police Department has around 2,500 sworn officers and the department covers 912 square miles. The letter says the fleet replacement is intended to strengthen public safety across that span and reduce duplicative costs for municipalities that would otherwise have to make their own law-enforcement infrastructure upgrades.

The practical payoff will depend on how quickly the new vehicles reach the street and what equipment is installed in them, but the list of recipients points to an effort to standardize police response across both the East End and western Suffolk. For towns and villages that operate with smaller budgets, the federal share could ease local pressure to finance replacements on their own.

LaLota’s office has already signaled that the push is not ending with the current round. His FY27 Community Project Funding page lists a $4,355,220 East End Law Enforcement Equipment and Vehicle Acquisition Project and a $4,217,236 Suffolk County Police Department Technology and Equipment Modernization Project, underscoring a continued focus on police fleet and equipment upgrades countywide.