Senate Appropriations Bill Cuts State, Local Law Enforcement 17 Percent, COPS Hiring Grants 19 Percent
By Laura DeKoven Waxman
September 19, 2011
The Senate Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Subcommittee reported out a FY 2012 spending measure September 14 on a 15-1 vote which would provide $26.9 billion to the Department of Justice, two percent less than is available this year. State and local law enforcement activities, however, would be funded at $2.3 billion, 17 percent less than is available this year. The full Appropriations Committee is marking up the bill as U.S.Mayor goes to press.
While complete information is not yet available it appears that for key local programs, the bill would provide:
$232 million for Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grants. This includes $200 million to hire or retain roughly 1,500 police officers, 19 percent below this year’s level of $247 million. The House version of the bill provided no funding for COPS.
$1 billion for state and local law enforcement assistance, including Byrne formula grants, the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program, bulletproof vests, and DNA backlog grants. It appears that within this Byrne Justice Assistance Grants would be funded at $396 million, $35 million (eight percent) below this year’s level but $38 million more than the House bill would provide.
$251 million for juvenile justice and delinquency prevention, $128 million more than the House bill would provide, but 41 percent less than is available this year. Included in this funding would be $60 million for missing and exploited children programs, $55 million for mentoring grants, $45 million for state formula grants, $33 million for delinquency prevention grants to the states, $20 million for victims of child abuse programs, and $8 million for the Justice Department’s community-based violence prevention initiative.
$418 million for domestic violence and sexual assault grants
The bill would zero out one of the Conference’s top priorities, Second Chance Act reentry programs.
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