Agenda Item # 11.a.
City Commission Regular Meeting - 6:00 pm
- Meeting Date:
- 09/08/2020
- Re
- Request Approval of Department of Justice COPS Hiring Grant award to the Police Department
- Submitted For:
- Diane Hobley-Burney
SUBJECT:
Approve request by the Fort Pierce Police Department to accept an award from the Department of Justice (DOJ) Community Oriented Policing Hiring Grant (COPS-HR) in the amount of $1,250,000.00 to hire 10 additional officers. The Department will modify the grant, once accepted, and utilize 50% of the original award to hire 5 officers. An email from the COPS Office is included explaining that the modification will be allowed.
SUMMARY:
The Fort Pierce Police Department was awarded a Department of Justice (DOJ) Community Oriented Policing Hiring Grant (COPS-HR) in the amount of $1,250,000.00 (over 36 months) to facilitate the hiring of ten (10) police officers to operate within a Community Oriented Policing framework/plan to affect a reduction in violent crime. The grant requires a 25% local match. At present, the City is experiencing financial strain due to the pandemic. The Department proposes to accept the award offered by DOJ and amend the grant budget to reflect the proposed utilization of 50% of the funding and positions awarded. To accomplish the reduction to five (5) officers, DOJ requires the City to accept the award for the full/original amount of the grant; once fully accepted, a budget modification to reduce the original award by 50% will be submitted to DOJ. The 25% required local match is proposed to be funded through the Fort Pierce Redevelopment Agency for the community policing initiative envisioned. The award of the COPS grant is a national-level competitive process. The City of Fort Pierce Police Department was one of only 24 law enforcement agencies in the state of Florida and one of 500 nationally to receive a funding award.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends acceptance of the DOJ grant award and subsequent proposed modifications.
ALTERNATIVES:
Decline the grant
RESPONSIBLE STAFF:
Diane Hobley-Burney, City of Fort Pierce Police Chief
Anita Cocoves, Grant Coordinator
Anita Cocoves, Grant Coordinator
COORDINATED WITH:
Nick Mimms, City of Fort Pierce City Manager
Johnna Morris, Director of Finance
Fiscal Impact
- Budgeted Y/N:
- N
- Fiscal Year:
- 2021
- Account:
- 101-3005-1010
- Amount:
- * 166,638.33
FISCAL IMPACT:
* COPS Hiring Program award recipients are required to contribute a local match of at least 25 percent towards the total cost of the approved award project. The local match must be a cash match from funds not previously budgeted for law enforcement purposes and must be paid during the award period. The local match contribution must be made on an increasing basis during each year of the three-year award period, with the federal share decreasing accordingly looking toward the continuation of the increased hiring level using State or local sources of funding following the conclusion of Federal support. The amount of fiscal impact requested toward the grant is inclusive of the contemplated budget amendment to reduce the acceptance of awarded funds.
Attachments
Form Review
| Inbox | Reviewed By | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Finance Department | Karen Logue | 09/01/2020 03:50 PM |
| City Manager | Nick Mimms | 09/02/2020 02:17 PM |
- Form Started By:
- Anita Cocoves
- Started On:
- 08/28/2020 11:09 AM
- Final Approval Date:
- 09/02/2020