Today, Rep. Cindy Axne (IA-03) announced the Norwalk Police Department and the Union County Sheriff’s Department will receive $500,000 in grants provided by the Department of Justice through the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) COPS Hiring Program (CHP).
The Norwalk Police Department, located in Warren County, will receive $375,000 and the Union County Sheriff’s Department will receive $125,000 to hire additional law enforcement officers.
“I’m proud to have the backs of the Iowans who work every single day to keep our local communities safe,” said Rep. Axne. “These grants will support our local law enforcement agencies and make sure they have the personnel they need to operate effectively. These grants come at an especially critical time as law enforcement agencies prepare for a new year while continuing to help their communities through the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.”
The COPS Hiring Program is a competitive award program intended to reduce crime and advance public safety through community policing by providing direct funding for the hiring of career law enforcement officers. CHP provides funds directly to law enforcement agencies to hire new or rehire additional career law enforcement officers, thereby increasing their community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts.
“We are excited and thankful to the Department of Justice for considering our application and awarding our police department,” said Norwalk Police Chief Greg Staples. “This grant will fund the hiring of additional officers in Norwalk, allowing our department to grow, along with the growing population in Norwalk. We appreciate the endorsement of our application by Representative Axne whose enthusiastic support helped to legitimize the request.”
“It is going to be great to add a deputy,” said Union County Sheriff Mark Shepherd. “This funding was sorely needed in Union County. It is going to help us with our investigations, and it will help us put more feet on the streets and increase our visibility in the community. The COPS grant is like the granddaddy of grants, and it is going to be a huge benefit to Union County taxpayers.”
The Department of Justice announced funding awards to 183 law enforcement agencies across the nation, which allows those agencies to hire 1,066 additional full-time law enforcement professionals.
Original source can be found here.
