[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 191 (Wednesday, October 6, 2021)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 55471-55472]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-21953]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 86 , No. 191 / Wednesday, October 6, 2021 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 55471]]


                Proclamation 10276 of October 1, 2021

                
National Community Policing Week, 2021

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Community policing--the practice of law enforcement 
                professionals working side-by-side with members of 
                their communities to keep neighborhoods safe--is a 
                critical and proven tool used by law enforcement 
                agencies across our Nation to improve public safety and 
                forge strong, valuable relationships. During National 
                Community Policing Week, we recommit to building bonds 
                of trust between our law enforcement officers and the 
                communities they serve and encourage community policing 
                practices across our Nation.

                America's law enforcement officers play an essential 
                role in protecting our communities and enforcing our 
                laws. Every time an officer pins on their badge and 
                walks out their front door, the loved ones they wave 
                goodbye to are forced to wonder if they will return 
                home safely. This week and every week, we recognize the 
                bravery and dedication of our peace officers who put 
                themselves on the line each and every day to protect 
                and serve their communities.

                We also recognize the role that all community members 
                play in advancing public safety. As our country 
                continues to reckon with a long and painful history of 
                systemic racism--as well as the ongoing challenges of 
                social and economic injustice, the COVID-19 pandemic, 
                mental illness, homelessness, and substance abuse--we 
                must think broadly, conscientiously, and creatively 
                about the future of effective policing and how to 
                foster strong police-community partnerships. Evidence 
                and experience tell us that strong neighborhood 
                relationships, the use of problem-solving to address 
                crime systematically, and improvements to policy and 
                training--key tenets of community policing--are all 
                tools that help make our communities safer. My 
                Administration is using programs such as the Department 
                of Justice's Project Safe Neighborhoods to bring 
                together law enforcement and community stakeholders in 
                an effort to develop local solutions to help prevent 
                violent crime.

                I have long been an advocate for community policing, 
                just as my late son Beau was when he served as Attorney 
                General of Delaware--because he knew, as I know, that 
                it works. It is especially important now, as State and 
                local governments across the country continue to climb 
                back from the once-in-a-century economic crisis 
                triggered by COVID-19 last year. With their budgets 
                decimated, countless communities were forced to cut 
                essential services in 2020, including law enforcement 
                and social services, just as a second public health 
                epidemic of gun violence threatened the safety of their 
                cities and towns. To help keep our communities safe, my 
                Administration has provided local leaders with guidance 
                on how American Rescue Plan funds can be used to help 
                reduce violent crime and ensure public safety. I am 
                also committed to investing in mental health services, 
                drug treatment and prevention programs, services for 
                people experiencing homelessness, and community 
                violence intervention. Community violence intervention 
                programs are vital to preventing violence before it 
                occurs, and they have a proven track record of reducing 
                crime by up to 60 percent in cities across our Nation.

                My Administration is also working to ensure that police 
                departments have the resources they need to serve their 
                communities safely and effectively.

[[Page 55472]]

                Communities experiencing a surge in gun violence can 
                make use of $350 billion in State and local funding 
                included in the American Rescue Plan to hire law 
                enforcement officers and advance community policing 
                strategies. I have also proposed an additional $300 
                million in my budget for next year to support community 
                policing across our country. As I seek that additional 
                funding, the Office of Community Oriented Policing 
                Services at the Department of Justice will continue to 
                provide grants for community policing pilot projects 
                and hiring local police officers--including funding 
                prioritization for officers who will live in the 
                communities they serve. These new resources will allow 
                departments to implement community policing strategies 
                and strengthen police-community partnerships.

                At its core, community policing is about building trust 
                and mutual respect between police and communities--
                important goals that can only be reached when we have 
                accountability and faith in our justice system. That's 
                why I strongly support the George Floyd Justice in 
                Policing Act, which would deliver meaningful 
                accountability, improved transparency, and the 
                resources necessary to support community policing and 
                build trust between law enforcement and the communities 
                they serve. Although that bill is not yet law, my 
                Administration will continue to consult with the law 
                enforcement and civil rights communities to achieve 
                reforms that advance safety, dignity, and equal justice 
                for all Americans.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, by virtue of the 
                authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws 
                of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 3 
                through October 9, 2021, as National Community Policing 
                Week. I call upon law enforcement agencies, elected 
                officials, and all Americans to observe this week by 
                recognizing ways to improve public safety, build trust, 
                and strengthen community relationships.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                first day of October, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                sixth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2021-21953
Filed 10-5-21; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F2-P