Agency Budget Summary
Department of Justice
Community Oriented Policing Services
I. Resource Summary
Note: FY 1998 includes $68 million in drug-related program obligations funded with prior year carryover funds.
II. Methodology
- The proportion of total resources estimated for drug-related programs remains at 33 percent, the same percentage included in the previous Drug Budget Submissions. The methodology employed to estimate the proportion of total COPS resources used for drug-related programs was jointly developed by the Department of Justice and the Office of National Drug Control Policy, based on the assumption that approximately one-third (33 percent) of the functions performed by police officers are drug-related, particularly since a significant amount of law enforcement activities are directed towards drug infested neighborhoods, drug trafficking-related problems, and drug prevention efforts.
III. Program Summary
- Statutory authority for the COPS program is provided by the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994. The COPS program, which includes grant resources to fund police hiring, redeployment, training, technical assistance, and evaluation programs, is a critical component of the Strategy. The COPS' program supports Goal 1, "Educate and enable America's youth to reject illegal drugs as well as the use of alcohol and tobacco" and Goal 2 "Increase the safety of America's citizens by substantially reducing drug-related crime and violence" of the Strategy. The FY 2000 request supports Goal 1 of the Strategy by providing funds for school safety and community crime prevention initiatives. The COPS program supports Goal 2 of the Strategy through hiring and redeployment of law enforcement officers and other community law enforcement personnel along with providing funds for innovative programs including research, technical assistance and evaluation to improve crime-solving techniques, crime fighting technologies, and crime prevention programs.
- The COPS program will empower communities in collaboration with law enforcement agencies to reduce the incidence of violence, crime and drug use in America. Safe and healthy community environments need to be created for children, adolescents, and adults through prevention of drug use, reduction of domestic drug-related crime and violence, the improvement of law enforcement capabilities, and the strengthening of partnerships between the local, state, and federal law enforcement communities.
IV. Budget Summary
1999 Program
- The FY 1999 enacted drug control program includes $61 million to support Goal 1, activities, and $410.9 million to support Goal 2 activities. The FY 1999 enacted program will provide funding for an additional 16,000 officers through the award of approximately 6,300 grants.
2000 Request
- The COPS' total FY 2000 drug control requested level for Goal 1 activities is $6.6 million, a reduction of $54.4 million from the FY 1999 level. This reduction is associated with the reduction to the Safe Schools Program. The FY 2000 request includes $414.2 million in support of Goal 2 activities, a net increase of $3.3 million over the FY 1999 level. Included in the FY 2000 request for Goal 2 activities are the following components:
- Crime fighting technologies providing funding for information integration and other police communication improvements;
- Community based prosecutors providing funding for the hiring, redeployment and training of prosecutors to interact directly with the community; and
- Crime prevention programs providing funding for grants engaging the entire community in preventing and fighting crime.
- The FY 2000 requested level will provide funding for 2,600 community law enforcementpersonnel through the award of over 1,100 grants.
V. Program Accomplishments
- Through the end of FY 1998, a cumulative total of 88,030 additional law enforcement personnel have been funded. The FY 1999 enacted program will provide funding for an additional 16,000 officers through the award of approximately 6,300 grants.
