Fort Myers City Recovery Act JAG project

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 Fort Myers will use the Recovery Act JAG funds to hire new personnel, purchase equipment, pay overtime, and provide training. The grant objectives are to improve and enhance the Fort Myers Police Department's law enforcement programs as well as stimulating the economy. The Department will create an accreditation assistant position that will assist the department in becoming accredited. The Fort Myers Police Department will install in-car video systems in patrol vehicles to enhance officer safety, improve agency accountability, and save monetarily on investigations. The in-car video cameras will provide transparency. Further, the department will continue its efforts in conducting multiple task force operations, by utilizing the funding provided for overtime. The task force operations will be conducted on a quarterly basis, targeting violent crime offenders. Finally, the funding will be used to provide officers with the opportunity to attend national trainings/conferences in order to acquire knowledge and skills that can be applied in the field.

NCA/NCF