Rep. Pascrell Announces
COPS Hiring Grants
For New Jersey
WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr. (NJ-09), co-chair of the Congressional Law Enforcement Caucus, announced $4.25 million in 2017 awards for the COPS Hiring Program (CHP). The grant funding will go toward hiring 34 police officers in municipalities across the state of New Jersey. In the Ninth Congressional District, the borough of Moonachie was awarded $125,000 for the hiring of one police officer.
“The COPS hiring grants are welcome news that will allow communities like Moonachie to hire additional officers to help keep New Jersey families safer,” said Rep. Pascrell, who has led bipartisan efforts in the House to ensure the Administration funds federal law enforcement grants. “It is individual cities and states that understand the individual needs and priorities for their community, not the federal government. While announcing these grants shows proper attention to local law enforcement, I remain very concerned the administration is trying to force federal immigration priorities onto local law enforcement. I hope no politics went into choosing who deserves these grants and there is no delay with communities receiving these critical dollars because the Trump Administration is trying to dictate local law enforcement priorities.”
The 2017 COPS Hiring Program is a competitive grant program that funds the hiring or rehiring of law enforcement officers. CHP provides 75 percent of the approved entry-level salaries and fringe benefits of each newly hired and/or rehired full-time officer, up to $125,000 per officer position, over the three-year (36-month) grant period. The complete list of award recipients can be found here.
Rep. Pascrell authored an amendment to direct funding to the COPS Hiring Program after the program was zeroed out in the Trump Budget proposal and the House Appropriations Committee spending bill.
###