$5 Million in federal COPS grants to strengthen state, local Rhode Island law enforcement

Several local police departments will soon have more backup and additional federal resources to crack down on heroin and opioid dealers thanks to a new round of federal ‘COPS grants’ totaling $4,921,873 that is being awarded to local law enforcement agencies across Rhode Island.

U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressmen Seth Magaziner and Gabe Amo helped make the funds available through the U.S. Department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program.  The new federal grants will allow local police departments to hire additional officers, conduct investigations and other activities related to the unlawful distribution of heroin and prescription opioids, and invest in community policing.

“This federal investment will help put more cops on the beat to reduce crime, enhance public safety, and combat the spread of deadly drugs that are poisoning communities.  It also invests in advancing the community policing model, which helps law enforcement build robust partnerships with the people they serve and protect, and invests in police training, safety, and well-being.  It helps ensure police officers have the resources they need to prevent violence in our communities.  Our police officers do an outstanding job and it’s important that the federal government be a reliable partner when it comes to ensuring local police departments have the right tools and staffing levels,” said Senator Reed.  “I also want to thank Director Clements for his assistance in ensuring Rhode Island’s police departments can successfully compete for these awards.”

“Police officers deserve our appreciation for heroically protecting and serving Rhode Islanders every single day,” said Whitehouse, a former Rhode Island Attorney General and senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.  “One way to express our thanks is to ensure we have enough officers on the beat to get opioids and other harmful drugs off the streets and to work with neighborhood leaders to prevent violent crime.  This funding from the COPS program does exactly that for law enforcement organizations across the state.”

“Rhode Island’s law enforcement officers work around the clock to keep us safe, and we must do our part to support them, especially because many local police departments are stretched thin,” said Rep. Seth Magaziner. “This federal funding will help increase recruiting efforts to prevent crime, keep Rhode Islanders safe, and get opioids and other drugs off the streets.”

“To advance a model of community policing — one where local law enforcement and the community forge mutual trust — we need trusted individuals serving our communities to ensure our staffing needs are met,” said Congressman Gabe Amo. “These federal grants through the Department of Justice will help our state achieve this goal. I appreciate Director Hugh Clements for all his help to ensure we are improving public safety in Rhode Island.”

Under the COPS grant program, local police departments can use the federal funding to help pay for hiring and retaining officers or for new equipment and initiatives to disrupt the trafficking of deadly drugs.

This round of federal COPS grants includes:

• $4 million for the Rhode Island Department of Public Safety through the COPS Anti-Heroin Task Force (AHTF)
• $175,000 for the Providence Police Department through the Community Policing Development (CPD) Microgrants program
• $250,000 for the Town of Middletown through the COPS Hiring Program (CHP) to add two officers
• $121,873 for the Town of North Smithfield through the COPS Hiring Program (CHP) to add one new officer
• $125,000 for the Town of Scituate through the COPS Hiring Program (CHP) to add one new officer
• $250,000 for the Tiverton Police Department through the COPS Hiring Program (CHP) to add two officers

The AHTF program is a competitive grant program that provides federal funds to state law enforcement agencies with multi-jurisdictional reach and interdisciplinary team structures, and is targeted to states with high per capita rates of primary treatment admissions.  Each grant is two years in duration, and there is no local match.

CHP grants provide critical funding to support entry-level career law enforcement officers in an effort to preserve jobs while increasing community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts.  CHP grants provide 75 percent federal funding for approved entry-level salaries and benefits for three years for newly-hired, full-time sworn officer positions (including filling existing unfunded vacancies) or for rehired officers who have been laid off, or are scheduled to be laid off on a future date, as a result of local budget cuts.

CPD program funds are used to develop the capacity of law enforcement to implement community policing by providing guidance on promising practices through the development and testing of innovative strategies; building knowledge about effective practices and outcomes; and supporting new, creative approaches to preventing crime and promoting safe communities. 

Created in 1994, the COPS program has advanced community-oriented policing nationwide, providing over 13,000 grants to state and local law enforcement agencies.  The COPS Office at DOJ is overseen by Director Hugh T. Clements, Jr., who was appointed to the post by President Biden last year after serving for 40 years as a member of the Providence Police Department.

This press release is from Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse