[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 84 (Wednesday, June 28, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1135]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




DEPARTMENTS OF COMMERCE, JUSTICE, AND STATE, THE JUDICIARY, AND RELATED 
                   AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2001

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                    HON. JUANITA MILLENDER-McDONALD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 22, 2000

  Ms. MILLENDER-McDONALD. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the 
amendment offered by Representatives Lowey, McCarthy, DeLauro and 
Stabenow. This amendment would increase by $150 million the bill's 
appropriation for the Community Oriented Policing Service (COPS) 
program. The COPS program adds officers to the beat, enhances crime-
fighting technology, and supports crime prevention initiatives.
  The COPS program is a Clinton/Gore initiative that has been 
successful in adding cops to the beat and advancing community policing 
nationwide. To date, the COPS program has funded more than 104,000 
officers. Community policing is a crime fighting strategy that 
encourages law enforcement to work in partnership with the community to 
solve crime problems. Mr. Chairman, this is a proven crime fighting 
initiative that has worked in my district and throughout the nation.
  COPS is making a difference in our schools. Many communities are 
discovering that trained, sworn law enforcement officers assigned to 
schools make a difference. The presence of these officers provides 
schools with on-site security and a direct link to local enforcement 
agencies.
  Community policing officers typically perform a variety of functions 
within the school. From teaching crime prevention and substance-abuse 
classes to monitoring troubled students to building respect for law 
enforcement among students, School Resource Officers combine the 
functions of law enforcement and education.
  These funds will allow the COPS program to award grants to add up to 
7,000 officers to our nation's streets and to provide added safety in 
our schools. These funds will be used to equip law enforcement with 
21st century tools to fight 21st century crime. Grants will be used to 
invest in interagency information networks, technology centers, 
ballistics testing, DNA research and backlog reduction, crime lab 
enhancement, and crime mapping and analysis.
  Mr. Chairman, my district is comprised of cities like Watts and 
Compton which struggle to meet the demands of crime fighting. While the 
rest of the nation is experiencing unprecedented drops in crime, our 
nation's urban centers are being left behind. I want to urge my 
colleagues to support this amendment which provides additional funding 
for a program that has truly taken a bite out of crime.

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