Title
Governor’s Highway Safety Program Grant for Traffic Safety - Driving While Impaired Task Force
Action
Action:
Adopt a resolution authorizing the City Manager, or his designee, to apply for and accept a grant in the amount of $249,169 from the North Carolina Governor’s Highway Safety Program for the Driving While Impaired Task Force.
Body
Staff Resource(s):
Estella D. Patterson, Police
Kevin Triola, Police
Katie Anderson, Police
Explanation
§ The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) has been invited to apply for a North Carolina Governor’s Highway Safety Program (NC GHSP) grant for the Driving While Impaired (DWI) Task Force. This is an annual opportunity, which has been granted to the city for the past 13 years.
§ The terms of the grant require that City Council adopt a resolution authorizing CMPD to apply for and accept grant funding.
§ The total cost for the DWI Task Force, made up of six officers and one sergeant, is projected to be $989,675 in fiscal year (FY) 2027. The grant will fund 25 percent of the Task Force’s costs ($249,169). The city plans to provide the 75 percent required match ($747,506) with funding from CMPD’s operating budget.
§ In FY 2025, the DWI Task Force charged a total of 713 DWI offenses and issued 2,980 total violations and 4,066 traffic stops.
§ To combat impaired driving through education, the DWI Task Force has taught six Drug and Alcohol Awareness classes at area high schools, universities, and at various community events, and three Standardized Field Sobriety Test (SFST) classes, two SFST refresher classes, and two DWI 101 classes to local law enforcement.
§ The seven positions partially funded by the NC GHSP Grant are permanent CMPD positions.
§ The grant is for a one-year term from October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2027.
Fiscal Note
Funding: North Carolina Governor’s Highway Safety Program Grant and Police Operating Budget
Attachments
Attachment(s)
Resolution