Commerce Police Department Drug Interdiction 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 city of Commerce will use the Recovery Act JAG funds to support the Commerce Police Department with the implementation of the Commerce Police Drug Interdiction Program. The Commerce Police Department has had a functioning Drug Interdiction Unit since mid 2007. The primary goal and focus of this unit is to identify and arrest individuals, companies, and criminal enterprises involved in the illegal drug trade, as well as to seize any and all assets obtained through their crimes. To successfully meet their goals, the officers of the Interdiction Program monitor interstate highways to observe indicators of criminal activity employing interdiction techniques to identify potential criminals in transit. The grant funds will be used to purchase and install two in-car computer systems to include computers, vehicle powered docking stations, printers, and software. The equipment will enable the officers to identify suspicious activity and offenders, access narcotics intelligence bulletins, assist in the documentation of evidence for subsequent court proceedings, and allow for coordination of enforcement action through local, state, and federal agencies. With the new equipment in place, the department will increase efficiency in drug interdiction activities.

NCA/NCF