[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 65 (Wednesday, May 9, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E754]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 
                                  2013

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. MAZIE K. HIRONO

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 8, 2012

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 5326) making 
     appropriations for the Departments of Commerce and Justice, 
     Science, and Related Agencies for the fiscal year ending 
     September 30, 2013, and for other purposes:

  Ms. HIRONO. Mr. Chair, Aloha. I rise today in support of the Lee-
Pascrell-Pierluisi-Welch-Sherman-Hirono-DeLauro-Israel-Himes amendment, 
which reverses the $126 million cut to the Community Oriented Policing 
Services (COPS) Program in H.R. 5326, the Commerce, Justice, Science 
and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2013. While I 
am a proud cosponsor of this amendment, last night I voted for the 
Grimm amendment to restore this important funding to keep our 
neighborhoods safe, which passed by two votes.
  COPS grants provide funding to state, local, and tribal law 
enforcement agencies to hire, preserve and/or rehire career law 
enforcement officers to increase their community policing capacity. 
COPS has been an unqualified success. Since this program was 
established, back when President Clinton was in office, violent crimes 
have declined throughout the country.
  Our state and local law enforcement agencies in Hawaii and across the 
country have had to make tough choices and tough cuts to weather this 
economy. To date, COPS grants have funded over 500 additional law 
enforcement officers in the State of Hawaii, contributing to additional 
community patrols and other crime prevention efforts to protect lives 
and property. The restoration of COPS Program funding is critical to 
ensuring the safety of all our communities, while also protecting and 
creating jobs for the American people.
  I urge my colleagues to support the amendment.

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