WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) has awarded $26.1 million in grants intended to protect children under the COPS Office’s Child Sexual Predator Program and its Secure Our Schools programs.
As many as 167 local law enforcement agencies and municipalities in 40 states and Puerto Rico received $15.9 million in grants to fund up to 50 percent of the total cost of purchasing and installing metal detectors, locks, lighting, fencing, closed-circuit surveillance systems and other safety equipment in schools.
Additionally, $10.2 million in grants was awarded to fund partnerships between state or local government agencies and their U.S. Attorney and U.S. Marshals Service offices that focus on locating, arresting, and prosecuting child sexual predators, as well as enforcing state sex offender registration laws.
Furthermore, COPS has awarded $298 million in grants to fund the hiring and retaining of 1,388 state, local and tribal law enforcement officers by 379 police and sheriffs departments in 49 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico through its COPS Hiring Program.
The grants provide 100 percent of the approved salary and benefits for entry level officer positions over a three year period. Police departments receiving the grants will then be required to retain the grant-funded positions for a fourth year. The funding will provide much needed support to state and local government budgets, and will help the nation’s law enforcement agencies add and retain the manpower needed to fight crime more effectively through community policing.
For more information about the grants, or to learn which law enforcement agencies received funding, please visit the COPS Hiring Program (CHP).
COPS Sept. 30, 2010 press release
