CARNEY VOTES FOR LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT – Federal funds will provide 1,505 additional P.A. officers on the Beat

By THE OFFICE OF CONGRESSMAN CHRISTOPHER CARNEY

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Carney joined a bipartisan majority in the House of Representatives to pass H.R. 1139, the COPS Improvement Act (342-78). The measure will reinvigorate the COPS program by authorizing $1.25 billion per year for hiring grants, $350 million per year for COPS technology grants, and $200 million per year to help hire community prosecutors. Pennsylvania will see over 1,500 new police officers on the streets as a direct result of the legislation.

“Keeping our communities safe is one of my top priorities in Congress,” said Congressman Carney. “This bill will not only maintain community safety, but it will also stimulate the economy by creating 50,000 new jobs around the country, and more than 1,500 right her in Pennsylvania.”

Under the COPS hiring grants program, the Nation experienced a significant drop in crime rates. A study performed by the non-partisan General Accounting Office concluded that “between 1998 and 2000, the COPS hiring grants were responsible for reducing crimes by about 200,000 to 225,000 crimes – one third of which were violent.” Unfortunately, the troubled state of the economy had left the program significantly underfunded.

“Tough economic times have caused certain types of crimes to rise in our communities, and the cuts in local police budgets have driven crime rates even higher. The COPS Improvement Act is necessary to give local police forces and area prosecutors the tools they need to fight the rise in crime and efficiently serve the public,” said Carney. “As a father of five, I am also supportive of the bill’s objective to establish partnerships between local school systems and local law enforcement agencies to combat crime, gangs, and drug activities in schools,” he added.

The bipartisan legislation has been endorsed by numerous organizations including the National Fraternal Order of Police, the National Narcotics Officers’ Association, the National Sheriffs Association, the National Association of Police Organizations, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, and the National League of Cities.

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April 23, 2009 at 6:54 pm

--pa2010.com Staff