Rep. Courtney Votes to Restore ‘COPS' Funding After Years of GOP Cuts and Elimination

Press Release

Rep. Courtney Votes to Restore ‘COPS' Funding After Years of GOP Cuts and Elimination

Congressman Joe Courtney voted today to reverse over a decade of funding cuts to the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) by the previous Republican Congresses. In 2006, the Republican Congress completely eliminated the program that has been heralded by law enforcement agencies and organizations as a successful and necessary one. Congressman Courtney cosponsored H.R. 1700, COPS Improvements Act of 2007, earlier this month.

"The COPS program is far too great an asset to the safety of eastern Connecticut's communities for it to remain an unfunded law enforcement program," stated Congressman Courtney. "Fortunately I have the opportunity to provide our local law enforcement agencies with this additional funding to help them protect our communities and schools. I am proud of the work our law enforcement officers do each day, and by giving them the resources they need to continue that effort is one way that I can express my appreciation."

Since 1994, one hundred fifty additional police officers and/or sheriff deputies have been hired in the Second Congressional District through the COPS grant program of which thirteen polices officers were hired as school resource officers. Since that time the Second Congressional District has received over $10,160,977 in COPS grants.

Since the program's inception in 1994 Second District law enforcement agencies have received over $1.8 million to purchase technology that enables agencies to put more officers on the street.

Created by former-President Bill Clinton in 1994, the COPS program received more than $1 billion in funding, but in 2005 the program received a paltry $10 million, and even worse, the 109th Congress cut the program entirely.

The goal of the 110th Congress is to fund the program to levels that will permit agencies to hire 50,000 additional police offices over the next 6 years, authorizing $600 million a year for COPS hiring grants. It also authorizes $350 million a year for COPS technology grants, and $200 million a year fo hiring community prosecutors.

The Fraternal Order of Police, National Association of Police Organizations and the National Sheriffs' Association all endorse this legislation.

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