FY 2009 Recovery Act 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.

Steuben County and the cities of Hornell and Corning will use their Fiscal Year 2009 Recovery Act JAG award in the amount of $48,264 to support separate law enforcement initiatives aimed at improving productivity, efficiency, and police officer safety. Through the grant, the city of Hornell will apply its share towards the salary of a newly hired information technologist tasked with maintaining the police department's records management system and mobile data terminals and license plate readers housed in patrol vehicles. The city of Corning Police Department will use its share to purchase a marked four-wheel drive patrol vehicle in order to patrol areas of the city that are unreachable by conventional cruisers. The Recovery Act funded purchase will support the economy as the vehicle and related emergency equipment will be supplied by American businesses. Though eligible for participation, the county has waived its portion of funds. For grant administration purposes, the city of Hornell has been designated as the fiscal agent.

NCA/NCF