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.

Onondaga County, the city of Syracuse, and the towns of Clay, DeWitt, and Manlius will use their Fiscal Year 2009 Recovery Act JAG funding in the amount of $973,413 to support multiple criminal justice initiatives. Through the grant, the county will redesign its justice center's central control, which is used to monitor the security of the facility. Funds will also be used to purchase marked police cruisers, and an evidence van used to respond to crime scenes and transport evidence. The town of Clay will use funds to support the salary of a records clerk tasked with maintaining police records. The town of DeWitt Police Department will use its share to relocate specialized law enforcement equipment in its booking-holding room, used to temporarily hold suspects awaiting processing and arraignments. The relocation will allow for personnel to better monitor individuals in custody. Funds will also be used to purchase firearms, ballistic vest trauma plates, and a speed sign display for traffic safety. The town of Manlius will use funds to purchase mobile computers for its police department's patrol vehicles, allowing officers to immediately access criminal justice databases and conduct field reporting while on patrol. The city of Syracuse will use remaining funds to purchase unmarked cruisers for special and criminal investigations unit work, firearms and a flash bang pole for its emergency response unit, equipment for its evidence and property tracking database, supplies for its DARE Program, and a records management database for its internal affairs division. Salaries for staff assigned to a violence intervention and prevention program and a reentry program will also be supported. For grant administration purposes, the city of Syracuse has been designated as the fiscal agent for this award.

NCA/NCF