CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- The federal government has awarded nearly $140-million in community policing grants to agencies across the country, including several in Illinois.
The COPS program, short for Advancing Community Policing by Hiring Officers, is designed to reduce crime and advance public safety through community policing by providing direct support to state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies nationwide. It will allow law enforcement agencies across the country to hire more than 1,000 new officers.
According to program leaders, 183 agencies made the cut out of nearly 600 that applied.
The Chicago Police Department is getting more than $6 million. Dolton and Calumet City are each getting more than $1 million. Other local departments on the list include Chicago Heights, Chicago Ridge, Maywood, Rosemont, and Worth. They are each getting between $250,000 to $500,000.
The competitive selection process is based on a variety of factors, including problem focus area, local crime data, agencies' commitment to community policing, agencies' demonstrated financial need, and statutory formulas.
According to the COPS Office, to date, the program has invested more than $14 billion, including grants to more than 13,000 state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies, to reduce crime by advancing community policing. In all, COPS Office funding has supported the hiring of more than 135,000 law enforcement officers in agencies large and small across the nation.
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