LoBiondo Encourages South Jersey Police Departments to Apply for Federal COPS Grants

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Congressman Frank A. LoBiondo (NJ-02) today encouraged local law enforcement departments in South Jersey to apply for federal funding available under the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring Program.

“The COPS Hiring Program continues to be a valuable tool to assist local law enforcement with their ongoing efforts to protect our communities,” said Congressman LoBiondo, a member of the Congressional Law Enforcement Caucus. “I strongly encourage South Jersey’s law enforcement departments to apply for these federal COPS grants.”

The COPS Hiring grant program will award $165 million in federal funding for Fiscal Year 2013 for the hiring and rehiring of additional career law enforcement officers in an effort to create and preserve jobs and increase their community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts.

Under the 2013 program, awardees may receive up to 75 percent of the approved entry-level officer salary and fringe benefit costs, with a minimum 25 percent local cash match requirement. Grant funds may be used to hire new, full-time sworn officer positions, to re-hire officers who have been laid off, or to re-hire officers who are scheduled to be laid off on a specific future date as a result of local budget cuts. As in the past, the COPS Hiring Program requires that each position awarded be retained with local funds for a minimum of 12 months at the conclusion of 36 months of federal funding for each position. Priority consideration will be given to agencies that use their COPS Hiring Program funding to hire either school resource officers or military veterans and those targeting to reduce homicide.

The COPS program is managed by the U.S. Department of Justice. More information about the COPS Hiring Program is available at www.cops.usdoj.gov. Deadline to apply is Tuesday, June 4, 2013.

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