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.

The disparate jurisdictions consisting of the city of Tacoma and Pierce County will use their Fiscal Year 2009 Recovery Act JAG award in the amount of $2,167,783 for hiring and preservation of personnel, improving technology, increasing the effectiveness of officer work, and strengthening community partnerships. The city of Tacoma, serving as the fiscal agent, will use its share to hire two full-time tactical analysts within the Crime Analysis Unit; purchase laptops, digital voice recorders, and other technology; provide overtime for an officer to work within the Tacoma School District to address truancy issues; partially fund three Domestic Violence Advocacy positions; educate and enforce the Curfew Ordinance and perform party intervention patrols through officer overtime; provide overtime for a bicycle patrol officer to work during swing shift hours; provide overtime for officers to work in the DUI Emphasis Patrol; and provide overtime to support education, prevention, intervention, and suppression for Neighborhood Prostitution Reduction Patrols and Liquor Control Task Force Inspection. Pierce County will use their portion to rehire one program coordinator to continue managing public education, information, and community outreach within the sheriff's department; hire one computer programmer within the prosecuting attorney's office; hire a county attorney within the Pierce County Department of Assigned Counsel (DAC); hire one court commissioner within the Pierce County Superior Court to primarily handle the criminal arraignment docket; and hire a bi-lingual Spanish-speaking victim services specialist for the Crystal Judson Family Justice Center (FJC).

NCA/NCF