[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 175 (Wednesday, September 10, 1997)] [Notices] [Pages 47679-47680] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 97-23986] ======================================================================= ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE Office of Community Oriented Policing Services FY 1998 Community Policing Discretionary Grants AGENCY: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, Department of Justice. ACTION: Notice of availability. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (``COPS'') announces the availability of grants to hire and/or rehire additional sworn law enforcement officers to engage in community policing. The COPS Universal Hiring Program permits interested agencies to supplement their current sworn forces or jurisdictions to establish a policing agency. Eligible applicants include State, local, and Indian policing agencies, jurisdictions seeking to establish a new policing agency and other agencies serving specialized jurisdictions, such as transit, housing, college, school, or natural resources. DATES: COPS Universal Hiring Program Application Kits are currently available. There will be two application deadlines for the Universal Hiring Program: November 14, 1997 and January 30, 1998. ADDRESSES: COPS Universal Hiring Program Application Kits may be obtained by writing to COPS Universal Hiring Program, 1100 Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, 20530, or by calling the Department of Justice Response Center, (202) 307-1480 or 1-800-421-6770, or the full application kit is also available on the COPS Office web site at: http://www.usdoj.gov/cops. Completed application kits should be sent to COPS Universal Hiring Program, COPS Office, 1100 Vermont Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20530. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Department of Justice Crime Bill Response Center, (202) 307-1480 or 1-800-421-6770. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Overview The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (Pub. L. 103-322) authorizes the Department of Justice to make grants for the hiring or rehiring of law enforcement officers to engage in community policing. The COPS Universal Hiring Program permits interested agencies to supplement their current sworn forces or to establish a new policing agency, through grants for up to three years. All policing agencies, as well as jurisdictions considering establishing new policing agencies, are eligible to apply for this program. In addition, policing agencies serving specialized jurisdictions, such as transit, housing, college, school, natural resources, and others, are eligible to apply for this program. There are two application deadlines for this program: November 14, 1997 and January 30, 1998. Departments may apply before either of the deadlines and equal consideration will be given to all applications submitted by the same deadline. All applicants will be asked to provide basic community policing and planning information for their area of jurisdiction. In addition, new applicants serving jurisdictions of 50,000 and over, as well as all those jurisdictions seeking to establish a department and agencies serving specialized jurisdictions (such as transit, housing, college, school, or natural resources), will be asked to provide additional information relating to the applicant's community policing plan, local community policing initiatives and strategies, local community support for the applicant's community policing plan, and plans for retaining the officers at the end of the grant period. In addition to the requested community policing information, all applicants will be asked to submit a streamlined budget summary containing information relating to planned hiring levels, salary and fringe benefits, and decreasing federal share requirements. The COPS Universal Hiring Program Application offers two alternative budget worksheets which are tailored to the number of officers requested by each applicant; applicants requesting five or fewer officers will complete one budget worksheet for each officer, while applicants requesting more than five officers will complete a single budget worksheet based on the average yearly cost per officer. Grants will be made for up to 75 percent of the total entry-level salary and benefits of each officer over three years, up to a maximum of $75,000 per officer, with the remainder to be paid by state or local funds. Waivers of the non-federal matching requirement may be requested under this program, but will be granted only upon a showing of extraordinary fiscal hardship. Grant funds may be used only for entry- level [[Page 47680]] salaries and benefits. Funding will begin once the new officers have been hired or on the date of the award, whichever is later, and will be paid over the course of the grant. In hiring new officers with a COPS Universal Hiring Program grant, grantees must follow standard local recruitment and selection procedures. All personnel hired under this program will be required to be trained in community policing. In addition, all personnel hired under this program must be in addition to, and not in lieu of, other hiring plans of the grantees. An award under the COPS Universal Hiring Program will not affect the eligibility of an agency for a grant under any other COPS program. The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance reference number for this program is 16.710. Dated: August 29, 1997. Joseph E. Brann, Director. [FR Doc. 97-23986 Filed 9-9-97; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4410-AT-M