The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About05/17/2011, C9 - 2011 OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) HIRING PROGRAM GRANT APPLICATION counat M"ig°°` 5n7n1 j acEnaa 12EpoRt dem Numbe �� C I T Y O F S AN L U IS O B I 5 P 0 FROM: Deborah Linden,Chief of Police Prepared By: Melissa Ellsworth, Senior Administrative Analyst SUBJECT: 2011 OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS)FIIRING PROGRAM GRANT APPLICATION RECOMMENDATION 1. Authorize staff to submit an application for a 2011 Federal Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring Program Grant application in the amount of$814,511 to fund two entry-level police officer positions for three years. 2. If grant funding is awarded, authorize the City Manager to execute all necessary grant documents. DISCUSSION Grant Program Information The Federal Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring Program is a highly competitive grant program that provides funding directly to local law enforcement agencies to create and preserve sworn peace officer jobs and to increase community policing capacity. Subject to funding availability, approximately $200 million in grant funds may be available in federal fiscal year 2011. COPS grant funding will cover 100% funding for entry-level salaries and benefits for three years (36 months) for full time sworn officers, including filling existing unfunded vacancies or rehiring officers who have been laid off(or are scheduled to be laid off at a future date) as a result of local budget cuts. There is no local match required; however, grant funding is based on current entry-level salary and benefits (step 1) so any additional salary/benefit costs for officers hired at a higher step, or who receive future salary or benefit increases, would be the City's responsibility. In addition, grant funds do not pay for uniforms, equipment, incentive pay (such as educational incentive) or overtime. COPS funds can only be used to supplement (increase) a grantee's law enforcement budget for sworn officer positions and cannot supplant(replace) state or local funds that a grantee otherwise would have spent on officer positions if it had not received a COPS award. Therefore, the Council's budget reduction decisions must be made independent of the availability of the grant funds. In addition, the program requires that at the end of the three year period; the City must retain all sworn officer positions awarded under the COPS grant for at least one additional year (year 4). A General Fund allocation to fully fund these positions would need to be added to the C9-1 2011 Community Oriented Policing Services Hiring Program Grant Application Page 2. Police Department's budget in FY 2014-15, over and above the number of locally-funded positions that would have existed in the absence of the grant. If staff determines before the end of the grant period that the City cannot retain the positions due to fiscal hardship, the City must submit a letter to the COPS office requesting a retention exemption. Obtaining an exemption would result in the City being deemed ineligible for any new COPS funding that contains a retention requirement for a one-year period. Failure to obtain a retention exemption prohibits the City from receiving additional funding for at least three years. Based on the fiscal forecast, should the Council be concerned that the City will be unable to fund the two officer positions for a fourth year (and beyond) then the appropriate action would be to direct staff not to apply for grant funding. The grant program is highly competitive, and as such all requests will be capped at no more than 5% of a City's actual number, of sworn employees. The Police Department currently has 59 sworn employees, therefore the maximum number of grant funded officers for which the City can apply is two. The City may receive all, part or none of the funding requested. May 25, 2011 is the grant application deadline. Proposed Use of Grant Funds In 2007, Council adopted a Major City Goal to improve public safety service levels, with an emphasis on neighborhood patrols (particularly at night) and traffic safety. For the neighborhood portion of the goal, staff developed a work program that included the creation of a new Neighborhood Team consisting of four patrol officers to specifically focus on neighborhood issues by increasing outreach and education and improving response times on the busiest nights. Council approved the addition of three new police officer positions to staff the Neighborhood Team. In 2008, as the Neighborhood Team was about to be implemented, the City's fiscal situation triggered the need to implement a hiring chill, followed by a hiring freeze. As a result, the Neighborhood Team was put on hold in order to keep core services staffed. In 2009-11, in order to close a budget gap of $10.4 million, the three proposed police officer positions were. eliminated from the budget. The COPS grant must be used to enhance community policing activities. The original concept of the Neighborhood Team fits the grant parameters by strengthening the Police Department's partnerships with neighborhood groups and residents, and enhancing problem solving activities in the neighborhoods, especially with regard to neighborhood disturbances. Due to the limit on the number of grant-funded officers the City can request (two), the original program concept would need to be modified to reflect reduced resources; however staff is confident the use of the grant-funded officers would be consistent with the focus of the grant. The City applied for COPS funding in both 2009 and 2010; however due to the extremely competitive nature of the grant, we did not receive funding. C9-2 �I 2011 Community Oriented Policing Services Hiring Program Grant Application Page 3 CONCURRENCES The Directors of the Finance/Information Technology and Human Resources Departments concur with the staff recommendation. FISCAL IMPACT City matching funds are not required for this grant. Grant funding will pay 100% of step I entry level salary and benefits for the new officers for 36 months; any additional costs must be paid for from the City's General Fund. The Police Department generally hires experienced (lateral) officers from other agencies who are usually hired at a salary step greater than step 1. Additional general fund costs include equipment,uniforms and uniform allowance, and anticipated education pay.. The following table depicts the estimated grant and general fund costs for the three year grant period, as well as the fourth year required retention period: ESTIMATED COSTS FOR TWO POLICE.OFFICER POSITIONS . Total rant Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Period Year 4 Grant Funding $259,853 $271,313 $283,346 $814,511 $0 General Fund $30,565 $21,453 $22,385 $74,403 $319,345 Total $290,418 $292,766 $305,731 $888,915 $319,345 *Note:Year 1 General Fund contribution includes one time equipment costs for two officers. ALTERNATIVES 1. Modify the number of positions sought in the grant application. Council may direct staff to apply for one police officer position rather than two. This would limit the general fund liability in the fourth year(and beyond) however the ability of the Police Department to dedicate officers to the neighborhoods would be lessened. 2. Do not submit a grant application. Council may choose not to submit a grant application for COPS funding. This action would be appropriate if Council is concerned the City will not be able to retain the positions for a fourth year after the grant funds are expended. T:ACouncil Agenda Reports\Police CAi�\201 1 X2011 Federal COPS Recovery Grant Application.doc C9-3