The Deschutes 911 director told me that the decision to encrypt even the dispatch channels was made by ONLY the heads of each of the law enforcement agencies. That is the "high level" mentioned. The County Commissioners, and City councilors had absolutely no say in the matter.
I have always supported our law enforcement 125%, but no longer can. Trust is a two-way street and they don't trust the public they serve with even basic radio information so I and many others can no longer trust them. .Heck, I hardly see a patrol vehicle and as far as I can tell, they are doing nothing for us. That certainly isn't true of OSP and the many other agencies that still respect the ones they serve. Speeding thru school zones and running stop signs is never enforced anymore.
I am not voting for anymore money for them. They got their private little radio system from us and that is enough. I know... I'll go take a breath.