What Wheeler County Sheriff Ofc does

Wheeler County Sheriff's Office is the sole in-County law enforcement agency for Wheeler County, Oregon — the least populated county in the state, covering 1,715 square miles of mountains, canyons, and rivers with a resident population of approximately 1,425. The office operates from the Wheeler County Courthouse at 701 Adams St, Fossil, Oregon, and is staffed by one Sheriff, three Deputies, and a network of Reserves and volunteers. Core services include patrol, criminal investigation, traffic enforcement, emergency response (911), concealed handgun license processing, search and rescue operations, anonymous drug activity reporting, and emergency management coordination. The Sheriff is an elected position; Jeremiah Holmes was elected on November 3, 2024.

The agency operates as a department within Wheeler County Government, funded primarily through county tax allocations and budget processes administered by the county Finance Department. Revenue is supplemented by transactional fees for services such as Concealed Handgun License applications ($55 certificate fee), sheriff's report requests, and real property sale fees, with payments processed via Point & Pay (2.50% credit card fee, $2.00 ACH fee). The office established itself through founding in February 1899 when the first Sheriff, Perry Lewis 'Lew' Keeton, was appointed. Strategic partnerships include the Northern Oregon Regional Corrections Facility (NORCOR), Oregon State Police, the Oregon Office of Emergency Management, FEMA, and USDA/APHIS Wildlife Services for wildlife predator control. The technology stack is standard county government infrastructure — Microsoft Online for email, Point & Pay for collections, Wix-hosted county website for public information — with no proprietary technology, public APIs, or developer-facing platforms.

Name

Wheeler County Sheriff Ofc

Legal name

Wheeler County Sheriff's Office

Website

https://wheelercountyoregon.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1899

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Wheeler County Sheriff's Office is the sole in-County law enforcement agency for Wheeler County, Oregon, serving approximately 1,425 residents across 1,715 square miles of rural terrain with patrol, emergency response, concealed handgun licensing, and search and rescue services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Fossil

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Tax Funding: Funded through standard county government financing mechanisms including property tax allocations and county budget processes. The Finance Department processes and manages payroll and benefits for approximately 32 county employees.
2. Fees and Permits: Revenue generated from various fees including concealed handgun license fees, sheriff's report request fees, and real property sale fees as documented in the WCSO Fee Schedule.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Wheeler County Sheriff's Office provides primary law enforcement services across 1,715 square miles of Wheeler County, Oregon, serving approximately 1,425 residents. Core offerings include patrol, criminal investigation, emergency response (911), concealed handgun license processing, search and rescue operations, anonymous drug activity reporting, and emergency management coordination with state and federal partners.

Product overview

Wheeler County Sheriff's Office is a county law enforcement agency providing core public safety services to approximately 1,425 residents across 1,715 square miles of rural Oregon terrain. The office offers a unified suite of law enforcement services including general patrol, concealed handgun license processing, search and rescue operations, and anonymous drug activity reporting. Wildlife predator and pest control services are provided through a separate county department via USDA/APHIS partnership. The Sheriff's Office operates with approximately 3 deputies, one Sheriff, and support from reserves and volunteers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Law Enforcement Services Primary law enforcement services for Wheeler County's 1,715 square miles covering approximately 1,425 residents. Includes patrol, criminal investigations, emergency response, traffic enforcement, and community safety delivered by the Sheriff plus three Deputies and Reserves.
• Concealed Handgun License (CHL) Processing

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Life Flight NetworkminorOthersNot-for-profit air medical service providing emergency medical transport with membership program available to county residents.
• AirLink Critical Care TransportminorOthersAir medical service covering Wheeler County for emergency medical transport needs.
• Oregon State Sheriffs' AssociationcoreOthersMembership organization providing advocacy and support for Oregon sheriff's offices. Wheeler County Sheriff's Office participates in this statewide professional association.
• Northern Oregon Regional Corrections Facility (NORCOR)coreOthersRegional corrections facility serving multiple counties in northern Oregon for inmate housing and correctional services.
• Oregon Office of Emergency ManagementcoreOthersState-level emergency management coordination for disaster preparedness, response, mitigation, and recovery operations.
• Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)coreOthersFederal disaster management agency providing support for emergency operations, flood mitigation, and disaster recovery through DLCD/FEMA floodsmart.gov programs.
• Oregon Department of AgricultureminorOthersAgricultural drought and disaster resource coordination for livestock indemnity programs and agricultural emergency response.
• US Department of AgricultureminorOthersFederal agency providing drought and disaster resources for rural agricultural communities in Wheeler County.
• Oregon State PolicecoreOthersRegional law enforcement partnership in North Central Oregon, with the District Attorney's Office working with Oregon State Police in the region.
• Department of Human Services - Child Welfare DivisioncoreOthersState agency partnership for child abuse and neglect cases, juvenile court processes, and child welfare coordination.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Grant County Sheriff's Office: Neighboring rural Oregon county sheriff's office in the same North Central region with comparable terrain, population scale, and statutory law enforcement mandate. Wheeler County was originally formed partly from Grant County in 1899.
• Gilliam County Sheriff's Office: Another small, rural Oregon county sheriff's office; Wheeler County was partly formed from Gilliam County in 1899. Operates under the same Oregon Revised Statutes framework with similar staffing and service-mix constraints.
• Crook County Sheriff's Office: Adjacent Central Oregon county sheriff's office serving a similarly rural, low-population jurisdiction; comparable patrol, search & rescue, and concealed handgun licensing responsibilities.
• Morrow County Sheriff's Office: Rural Eastern Oregon county sheriff's office with comparable population scale, county-funded operating model, and multi-agency regional partnerships.
• Sherman County Sheriff's Office: One of Oregon's least-populated counties; provides a direct comparable in scale, terrain, and service delivery challenges for a small rural sheriff's office.
• Wasco County Sheriff's Office: Neighboring North Central Oregon sheriff's office with overlapping regional coordination responsibilities and a similar mix of rural patrol, corrections partnership (NORCOR), and emergency-management duties.

Broad incumbents

• Oregon State Police: State-level law enforcement agency that operates statewide and provides mutual aid/regional coverage to county sheriff's offices; documented 'mutual' partnership with Wheeler County for North Central Oregon law enforcement coordination.

Others

• Northern Oregon Regional Corrections Facility (NORCOR): Regional corrections/jail partner used by Wheeler County and other small Oregon counties for inmate housing. Adjacent ecosystem participant rather than a direct competitor.
• Life Flight Network: Not-for-profit air medical transport provider with documented partnership covering Wheeler County for emergency medical transport — an enabling/adjacent service to sheriff search & rescue operations.
• Axon Enterprise: Leading supplier of body cameras, TASER devices, and digital evidence management software to U.S. law enforcement agencies; relevant as the dominant vendor of technology tools that small rural sheriff's offices like Wheeler County typically procure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/WheelerCountySheriffsOffice

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wheeler County Sheriff Ofc