Issue Position: Justice & Law Enforcement

Issue Position

Keeping our communities safe means providing Rhode Island law enforcement with the resources they need to deter, prevent, and prosecute crime. It also means fostering collaborative partnerships between citizens, businesses, and cops on the beat.

A member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Science, Reed has secured vital funding for local police departments. He helped local communities create a unified, interoperable, emergency communications system so police, firefighters, and emergency officials can effectively communicate during emergencies.

In an effort to reduce crime nationwide, Senator Reed helped pass legislation to allow local police departments across the country to hire 100,000 new police officers through the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program. To date, Rhode Island communities have used funding from this program to hire over 400 police officers.

Reed hosts an annual FIRE grant workshop that have helped Rhode Island fire departments obtain over $28 million in federal support to improve their emergency response capabilities. He has also cosponsored legislation to provide police officers with life-saving bulletproof vests. Since 1999, this program has helped Rhode Island police departments purchase more than 7,000 vests.

Key Priorities & Accomplishments

Reed helped pass Meghan's Law and the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Database Act to crack down on violent offenders who prey on the most vulnerable members of our society.
Reed fought for initiatives like the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) program, which focuses on out of school-hours activities for children that have been proven to reduce crime, drug use, and teen pregnancy.
Secured $1 million for the Providence Police Department's Gun Violence and Gang Reduction Initiative to expand intervention efforts that specifically address gun-related violence and gang activity. He also helped secure over $388,000 in federal crime prevention grants to enhance the state's crime lab and medical examiner's offices.
Cosponsored the Second Chance Act, which was signed into law, to strengthen programs to reduce recidivism through job-skill training, substance abuse treatment, and other support services that increase the odds of successfully transitioning back into society as law-abiding citizens.

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