Gilroy
– The president’s proposed budget cuts to a law enforcement
program that helps the Gilroy Police Department prevent crime and
purchase bullet-proof vests could eliminate thousands of dollars in
funding this year to the department – and every department in the
county.
By Lori Stuenkel
Gilroy – The president’s proposed budget cuts to a law enforcement program that helps the Gilroy Police Department prevent crime and purchase bullet-proof vests could eliminate thousands of dollars in funding this year to the department – and every department in the county.
Under President George W. Bush’s $2.57-trillion budget proposed this month, Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) would be slashed from $499 million to $22 million nationwide.
Gilroy police have received $640,000 in COPS grants since 1996. The grant amounts have declined from about $100,000 in ’97 and ’98, to $46,000 in 2003 and $19,000 last year, according to Capt. Debbie Moore.
The type of grant Gilroy used to receive directly is gone; now, Santa Clara County as a whole can apply for a $750,000 pool to distribute throughout its law enforcement agencies.
But it’s likely the GPD, along with departments from San Jose, Campbell, Milpitas, and Palo Alto, won’t see any COPS funding.
The reason, Moore said, is timing. The application deadline in March 31.
“The issue with dealing with that is, there’s no way all the cities in the county can get together and talk about how each city can utilize the money, or what’s a fair way to request the grants,” Moore said. “What’s fair for one isn’t necessarily fair for another. We don’t even know at this time if we’re even going to be able to make an application – that’s quite a few agencies to get together.”
Police found out last week that agencies had 40 days instead of 90 to prepare the application. Plus, the grant spending plan has to be approved 30 days before the deadline: Each department would have to hold a public hearing at a city council or board of supervisors meeting before getting the plan approved by the board or city administrator.
“We would basically have to have that over and done with by the end of this week,” Moore said, adding that there’s “no way” that can happen.
Moore said departments are contacting their representatives to try to get the deadline extended, but in the meantime, all county agencies are planning to meet later this week. A meeting was tentatively set for today, although it was unclear if every agency would be able to attend.
When they do meet, Moore said they will try to determine if the $750,000 can be broken down by department to roughly mirror the amounts received in the past.
The grants have a broad range of uses, but the GPD often purchases high-cost equipment, such as cameras in patrol cars, and bulletproof vests, Moore said.
The department used $35,000 of COPS funding to purchase Tasers for most of its officers last year. A 2004 grant also funded the purchase of some bulletproof vests. But the grants also are used to fund projects that promote public safety, including the Volunteers in Policing and Citizens Police Academy programs.
“If we can’t get it this year, at least we’d better be ready to go after it next year,” Moore said.
Included in COPS funds is money allocated to the state through the Edward Byrne memorial grant program, in memory of a fallen New York police officer, that partially funds the Unified Narcotics Enforcement Team in South Santa Clara and San Benito counties. UNET is made up of San Benito County sheriff’s deputies and probation officers, California Highway Patrol officers and those from the Hollister, Morgan Hill, and Gilroy police departments.
Specially-trained UNET agents focus on drug activity in the area, such as locating and destroying marijuana gardens grown in remote areas around Gilroy and Hollister.
Bush’s proposed cuts would shave nearly $180,000 from UNET’s budget, according to San Benito Sheriff Curtis Hill. Without that money, the narcotics team would lose the use of their facility and two full-time positions, including the secretary and a probation officer, Hill said.
“If we can’t get the money somewhere, we’ll have to find it in another pot,” Hill said. “The president has made cuts every year he’s been in office, and every year we’ve been able to keep going. But this year sounds particularly ominous.”
