3 Arizona law enforcement agencies get over $3M in federal grants for new officers
Oct 24, 2022, 8:00 PM
(Facebook Photo/Glendale Police Department - Arizona)
(Facebook Photo/Glendale Police Department - Arizona)
PHOENIX – Three Arizona law enforcement agencies were awarded more than $3 million in federal funding to spend on 27 new full-time officers, the Department of Justice recently announced.
The grants to Pima County, Casa Grande and Glendale are part of $139 million going to 180 agencies nationwide to hire nearly 1,000 officers.
The 2022 funding comes from the COPS Hiring Program (CHP) out of the DOJ’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS). The program aims to bolster community policing in order to reduce crime and enhance public safety.
Pima County was awarded $1.75 million to hire 14 officers. Casa Grande is getting $1.25 million for 10 officers. Glendale’s grant was $375,000 for three officers.
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In 2021, Glendale received $500,000 in CHP funding for four officers.
“As law enforcement agencies across the nation continue to experience recruitment and retention challenges, we are proud to provide these resources to help alleviate those challenges confronting the profession,” COPS Acting Director Robert Chapman said in an Oct. 13 press release.
CHP is a competitive award, with the 2022 winners selected from 711 applicants who sought over $330 million to fund about 2,800 positions.
Applicants had to propose plans and focus areas. For this year’s grants, agencies prioritizing the following areas were given additional consideration in the selection process: building legitimacy and trust, violent crime, police-based response to persons in crisis, and combating hate and domestic extremism.
