BWC Cost and Storage Estimator

BWC Cost and Storage Estimator

Source

BWC TTA (2019)

Many BWC sites struggle with program cost issues. It can be difficult to estimate and forecast the ongoing costs of maintaining BWC programs, including equipment, infrastructure, storage, redaction, personnel, and other costs. In addition, sites may be unsure whether the potential savings from BWCs (e.g., through reduced investigations of complaints against officers, reduced investigations of use of force incidents, reduced civil litigation) might come close to or exceed the costs of BWC programs, producing net savings.

The BWC Program Cost Estimator was developed primarily as a tool to guide BWC sites through these various cost issues to help them think more concretely and comprehensively about costs related to BWC programs and plan for long-term costs and benefits of a BWC program. This Cost Estimator is a spreadsheet-based algorithm (set of mathematical calculations) that allows a BWC site to enter real or estimated cost and cost-related data for a series of variables. Using this data, the tool quickly estimates the current and future costs of the site’s BWC program. It also estimates whether the anticipated benefits of the site’s BWC program will offset program costs in part or in whole. This Estimator can provide estimates for planning purposes, helping sites understand different BWC program cost drivers and potential savings.

The intent of the Estimator is not to produce a precise forecast of costs and savings for the purposes of official budgeting. Rather, the Estimator is intended to guide thinking about the costs and benefits of a BWC program and provides for making low, medium, and high cost and benefit assumptions to help jurisdictions gauge potential future costs and savings. 

Download the Cost Estimator here.

Read the guidebook here.