FY 2009 Justice Assistance Grant Program

This grant program is authorized by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5) (the 'Recovery Act') and by 42 U.S.C. 3751(a). The stated purposes of the Recovery Act are: to preserve and create jobs and promote economic recovery; to assist those most impacted by the recession; to provide investments needed to increase economic efficiency by spurring technological advances in science and health; to invest in transportation, environmental protection, and other infrastructure that will provide long-term economic benefits; and to stabilize state and local government budgets, in order to minimize and avoid reductions in essential services and counterproductive state and local tax increases. The Recovery Act places great emphasis on accountability and transparency in the use of taxpayer dollars.

Among other things, it creates a new Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board and a new website ' Recovery.gov ' to provide information to the public, including access to detailed information on grants and contracts made with Recovery Act funds.

The Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program funded under the Recovery Act is the primary provider of federal criminal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions. Recovery JAG funds support all components of the criminal justice system, from multi-jurisdictional drug and gang task forces to crime prevention and domestic violence programs, courts, corrections, treatment, and justice information sharing initiatives. Recovery JAG funded projects may address crime through the provision of services directly to individuals and/or communities and by improving the effectiveness and efficiency of criminal justice systems, processes, and procedures.

San Mateo County, serving as the fiscal agent for this award, will share the Fiscal Year 2009 Recovery Act JAG funds with 12 disparate jurisdictions within the county. In a disparate situation, the units of local government must apply for an award with a single, joint application. Each jurisdiction's allocation will be used for activities and projects that will provide meaningful and measurable outcomes consistent with the goals of the Recovery Act, which include preserving and creating jobs and providing continuing forensic services to law enforcement agencies. Each jurisdiction's allocation will be used towards a crime lab account and will pay for forensic laboratory services provided by the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office, including processing cases, evidence, fees, and services. In addition, hiring new staff and continuing to employ current contract employees will assist the laboratory in meeting its goals of improving the service level provided to law enforcement agencies by reducing turnaround times and the number of backlogged cases in latent prints, toxicology, firearms, and biology/DNA.

NCA/NCF