LOCAL-FEDERAL PARTNERSHIP ON LAW ENFORCEMENT/PUBLIC SAFETY

WHEREAS, following extensive engagement by mayors and police chiefs, the United States Congress passed, and President Clinton signed, the Public Safety Partnership and Community Policing Act, which became law on October 1, 1994 and created the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program as well as other key law enforcement partnership initiatives; and

WHEREAS, in 1996 Congress began providing flexible funding directly to local governments through the Local Law Enforcement Block Grant and cities have effectively used these Block Grant funds for prevention, increased police presence, technology and equipment, among other activities; and

WHEREAS, community oriented policing supported by these local-federal partnership initiatives, including the deployment of additional officers, new technologies, and innovative crime prevention strategies has helped contribute to significant decreases in crime rates in cities across the country; and

WHEREAS, the nation must remain diligent on crime prevention and control efforts to ensure that past gains are maintained and that crime rates are further reduced, especially as they relate to youth violence and crime, new and evolving drug-related crime concerns, and in light of the anticipated return of over 600,000 ex-offenders from prisons and jails back into local communities in 2001 alone - many of whom will have not received needed drug treatment; and

WHEREAS, the Fiscal Year 2002 budget proposed by President George W. Bush is the first Administration budget proposal to request funding for the Local Law Enforcement Block Grant, and contains a funding request for additional law enforcement officers in schools, law enforcement technologies, and the prosecution of gun crimes,

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that The U.S. Conference of Mayors commends the Administration for proposing a continuation of the local-federal partnership on public safety; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that The U.S. Conference of Mayors calls on Congress and the Administration to support highly flexible, direct law enforcement assistance which will strengthen the local-federal partnership on public safety and allow communities to: continue to promote the implementation of department-wide community policing; deploy additional officers and maximize the efficiency of existing officers through the use of overtime; address officer retention issues; deploy needed public safety technologies with maximum flexibility; improve youth and school safety; strengthen efforts to reduce the sale and use of illegal drugs; address concerns related to drugs in prisons and offender re-entry; support alternative sentencing programs; and increase local prosecutions; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that federal assistance for this important local-federal public safety partnership must be fully maintained in FY 2002 and beyond through the appropriations process.