Title
2017 Justice Assistance Grant
Action
Action:
Accept a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice in the amount of $507,734 from the Justice Assistance Grant Program.
Body
Staff Resource(s):
Kerr Putney, Police
Coerte Voorhees, Police
Morgan Parks, Police
Explanation
§ Each year, the City applies for and receives grant funding from the Justice Assistance Grant Program administered by the U.S. Department of Justice.
- The grant funding must be used for law enforcement purposes, and
- The grant award amount is determined from an index based on reported violent crime rates.
§ The enabling legislation for the grant requires that the City share a portion of the funding with Mecklenburg County, as the service provider for the incarceration of offenders.
§ The formula for distribution is 75/25, with the City receiving 75 percent of the funding and Mecklenburg County (Sheriff’s Office) receiving 25 percent of the awarded funding.
§ The City’s share of the funding will be $380,801; Mecklenburg County will receive $126,933.
§ CMPD will use the grant funding for three purposes:
- $154,113 will be used for overtime for patrol officers to address crime problems at the neighborhood level, including responding to emerging crime trends, identifying and targeting suspects, and working with partners to address the enablers of crime.
- $20,000 will be used to cover overtime for Crime Lab employees to complete evidence analysis in priority cases and to address any backlogs in evidence analysis.
- $206,688 will be used to fund the Police Cadet Program, in which 20 college students majoring in criminal justice gain exposure to police work while they perform tasks that do not require the expertise of sworn police officers.
§ The grant does not require any matching contribution from the City.
§ The grant period runs from October 1, 2016, to September 30, 2020.
Fiscal Note
Funding: U.S. Department of Justice for Justice Assistance Grant