IN SUPPORT OF THE CREATION OF A COPS OFFICE TRANSITIONING TO CONSOLIDATION GRANT PROGRAM

            WHEREAS, local governments are partnering to implement collaborative approaches to community policing and public safety while some local governments have also undertaken steps to consolidate their police forces to increase efficiency in this time of budgetary stress; and

            WHEREAS, the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Office has provided support to America’s state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies through the provision of grants and technical assistance since its establishment within the U.S. Department of Justice in 1994; and

            WHEREAS, the COPS Office is an advocate of innovation in community policing practices and strives to incorporate and provide support for those new strategies in its curriculum of grant programs and technical assistance; and

            WHEREAS, the COPS Office understands the interconnectedness of local governments in transitioning community policing efforts and the need to consolidate public safety services,

            NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that The United States Conference of Mayors supports the development of a new COPS Office discretionary grant program to provide support for transitioning community policing partnerships and consolidation activities.

            Projected Cost: Unknown