Title
Resolution Confirming Application for, and Acceptance and Appropriation of the 2011 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant from the United States Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance to Police Services
Memorandum
On June 6, 2011, the Unites States Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance released the local government solicitation for the 2011 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant. The City of Ann Arbor Police Services is eligible for an award of $27,996. The deadline for submission of an application on-line to the United States Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance was July 21, 2011. The Mayor authorized Police Services to submit an application on July 19, 2011 to ensure the deadline was met. Authorization to accept and appropriate the grant, if awarded, is contingent upon approval of Council.
The 2011 Justice Assistance Grant requires that Police Services make the grant application available for review by City Council. Grant requirements also stipulate that the City's application and any future amendments be made available for review and comment by citizens and neighborhood or community organizations to the extent that applicable law or established procedure make such an opportunity available.
In keeping with these requirements and with City procedures, Ann Arbor Police Services submits in advance a proposed resolution, the application and the public hearing notice to City Administration for review and distribution to City Council members. City Council members received the application on July 19, 2011, via e-mail communication from the City Administration advising City Council of the availability for review, in accordance with the grant terms, in preparation for the September 6, 2011, Public Hearing and City Council Meeting.
The City Clerk's Office published the public hearing notice in the Washtenaw County Legal News on September 1, 2011, and posted a copy of the grant application in the City Clerk's office for public review beginning on September 1, 2011. Staff is asking Council to approve this resolution after the public hearing is held on September 6, 2011.
The 2011 Justice Assistance Grant Program provides an opportunity for local governments to support activities to prevent and control crime and to improve the criminal justice system. Funding under this grant program allows local government to fund activities under any of the following six purpose areas:
Law Enforcement programs
Prosecution and court programs
Prevention and education programs
Corrections and community corrections programs
Drug treatment programs
Planning, evaluation and technology improvement programs
The City of Ann Arbor Police Services is eligible to use JAG funds for personnel, overtime, technical assistance, training, and equipment in one or more purpose area.
Police Services plans on using funding from the 2011 JAG to implement a law enforcement specific, geospatial, crime mapping dashboard also known as a Law Enforcement Information Dashboard (LEID).
The focus of AAPD personnel deployment continues to be in the areas of uniformed patrol response and investigations. Both functions are currently performed exclusively by sworn personnel. Staffing assigned to support roles has been reduced or remained at decreased levels.
One role that support staff has performed in the department is crime analysis, crime mapping and statistics generation. This information helps to identify trends in criminal offences by variables such as hour of day, day of week, neighborhood, etc., although it lags near real-time availability due to the time intensive nature to generate the information. As time has gone on, this task has been relegated primarily to one individual. That individual's role has changed over time requiring other tasks to be performed that are not related to crime analysis and mapping yet equally important to service delivery to the community.
The Ann Arbor Police Department has been working with peer agencies in Washtenaw County to identify internal tasks or service delivered to the public where the need is the same regardless of jurisdictional boundaries. Crime mapping and analysis is one of those areas. AAPD as well as all law enforcement agencies of Washtenaw County are members of the same consortium focused on providing a complete law enforcement records management system to its users. The name of the consortium is CLEMIS. It is based in Oakland County Michigan there are member agencies from several other Michigan Counties that are members of CLEMIS. Any crime mapping dashboard application AAPD pursues will be shared with the CLEMIS consortium with the intent of utilizing such a tool across multiple agencies.
In the event that the JAG does not completely cover the cost of development and implementation costs associated with a LEID the balance would likely be funded through existing state or federal forfeiture funds that AAPD currently has budgeted. No specific funding currently exists in the AAPD general fund budget.
As the 2011 Justice Assistance Grant Program uses an on-line application and award documents process involving electronic signatures, Police Services is requesting that City Council authorize the City Administrator or his designee to accept the grant, if awarded, and appropriate when received the grant funds to the Police Services budget for expenditure during the life of the grant without regard to fiscal year.
Staff
Prepared by: Greg Bazick, Deputy Chief, Police Services Unit
Reviewed by: Barnett Jones, Safety Services Area Administrator
Approved by: Tom Crawford, Interim City Administrator
Body
Whereas, On June 6, 2011, the Unites States Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance released the local government solicitation for the 2011 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant;
Whereas, The City of Ann Arbor Police Services is eligible for an award of $27,996.00;
Whereas, The deadline for submission of an application on-line to the United States Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance was July 21, 2011 and the Mayor authorized Police Services to submit an application on July 19, 2011 to ensure the deadline was met;
Whereas, Authorization to accept and appropriate the grant, if awarded, is contingent upon approval of Council;
Whereas, Police Services plans on using funding from the 2011 JAG to implement a law enforcement specific, geospatial, crime mapping dashboard also known as a Law Enforcement Information Dashboard (LEID);
Whereas, The 2011 Justice Assistance Grant requires that Police Services make the grant application available for review by City Council prior to its submission;
Whereas, Grant requirements stipulate that the City's application and any future amendments be made available for review and comment by citizens and neighborhood or community organizations to the extent that applicable law or established procedure make such an opportunity available;
Whereas, The Police Services submitted the application to the City Administration on July 19, 2011, for review and distribution to City Council members, via e-mail communication, advising City Council Members of the availability for review, in accordance with the grant terms, in preparation for the September 6, 2011, Public Hearing and City Council Meeting;
Whereas, The City Clerk's Office published the public hearing notice in the Washtenaw County Legal News on September 1, 2011, and posted a copy of the grant application in the City Clerk's office for public review beginning on September 1, 2011; and
Whereas, The $27,996.00 grant award requires no matching funds, but the award documents specify that a trust fund account be established;
RESOLVED, That City Council approve the submitted grant agreement with the United States Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance, which approval indicates its acceptance of the grant and its terms;
RESOLVED, That if awarded the grant, City Council accept the 2011 Justice Assistance Grant in the amount of $27,996.00 and appropriate the grant funds to Police Services to be expended from a trust fund account established in accordance with the terms of the grant during the life of the grant without regard to City fiscal year; and
RESOLVED, That the City Administrator or his designee be authorized and directed to execute the grant agreement between the City of Ann Arbor and the United States Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance after approval as to form by the City Attorney and to take all necessary actions to implement this Resolution, including all necessary accounting measures acceptable to the funder to identify grant funds and their disbursement.