WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) on Friday announced funding awards to 263 cities and counties, aimed at creating, and in some cases protecting, 937 law enforcement positions. More than $125 million will be awarded nationally, including nearly $45 million to fund 356 new school resource officer (SRO) positions.
The COPS Hiring Program offers grants to state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to hire or rehire community policing officers. The program provides salaries and benefits for officer and deputy hires for three years.
Grantees for the 2013 hiring program were selected based on their fiscal needs, local crime rates, and community policing plans. There was an additional focus this year on agencies requesting assistance in developing school safety programs that would include the hiring of a school resource officer. School resource officer positions funded by the COPS Office are sworn law enforcement positions that work within a school district or facility, interacting directly with school administrators and students.
Some of the 2013 COPS Hiring Program (CHP) grant recipients for SROs in 2013 include:
- Phoenix, Ariz., $1,875,000
- Yuma, Ariz., $1,000,000
- Modesto, Calif., $1,000,000
- Bridgeport, Conn., $2,247,250
- Hillsborough County (Fla.) Sheriff’s Dept., $1,250,000
- Okaloosa County (Fla.) Sheriff’s Office, $1,401,158
- Pasco County (Fla.) Sheriff’s Dept., $1,250,000
- New Orleans PD, $1,250,000
- Flint, Mich., $1,119,897
- Spartanburg County (S.C.) Sheriff’s Dept., $1,021,950
- Hamilton County (Tenn.) Sheriff’s Dept., $1,000,000
- El Pas County (Texas) Sheriff’s Dept., $1,250,000
Read the 2013 CHP SRO List by State
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