BACKGROUND:
The Cathedral City Police Department has been eligible and has applied for the Edward Byrne Memorial Assistance Grant program for several years. This year, as in past years, several Riverside County law enforcement agencies were identified as “disparate funding” agencies. This disparate allocation occurs when a city is allocated one and one-half times (150 percent) more than the county, which the county bears more than 50 percent of the costs associated with prosecution or incarceration of the municipality’s Part 1 violent crimes. A disparate allocation also occurs when multiple cities are collectively allocated four times (400 percent) more than the county, and the county bears more than 50 percent of the collective costs associated with prosecution or incarceration of each municipality’s Part 1 crimes. Cathedral City has been identified as a disparate agency for this year.
The total funding identified for Riverside County is $547,705.00. Riverside County Sheriff’s Department will receive $75,022.00 and the remaining 15 municipalities will receive $472,688.00. The $547,705.00 is the amount for Riverside County and the participating cities with the county. This formula explains why Cathedral City and the 15 other agencies in Riverside County were identified as disparate funding agencies. The jurisdictions certified as disparate must identify a Fiscal Agent who will submit a joint application for the aggregate eligible allocation to all disparate municipalities. The joint application must determine and specify the award distribution to each unit of local government and the purpose for which the funds will be used. The cities and county agreed that the County of Riverside (Sheriff’s Dept) would be the Fiscal Agent for 2023.
Riverside County has created an Interlocal Agreement for the 15 cities and the joint application for the disparate agencies.
The identified funds for Cathedral City are: $12,279.00 less 10% ($1,228) to the County Sheriff’s Dept. for their role as Fiscal Agent and for managing the application process.
The remaining balance of $11,051.00 is awarded to Cathedral City.
DISCUSSION:
The Cathedral City Police Department will purchase the following equipment with the 2023 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program (JAG) funding allotment:
Three Taser 7 Certification Bundles at a cost of cost of $3,724.60 per unit. The package includes the battery pack for each unit, holsters for deployment by officers, licenses for evidence submission and extended warranty for the unit and battery packs. The total price of the three units with supporting software and equipment is a total of $11,963.15.
**All items listed include the sales tax and handling in the price The Cathedral City Police Department is allotted 52 sworn officer positions and currently staffed at 51 sworn. The police department continues to work diligently to add personnel by focusing on hiring qualified candidates to fill openings and continue to provide quality services to our residents. In hiring additional police officers to backfill open positions, the department is required to equip officers with less-lethal equipment to safely carry out their duties. The department has budgeted for essential equipment; however, it does not cover every piece of essential equipment needed. During the past couple of years, the law enforcement profession has been faced with increased scrutiny over existing policing practices. The scrutiny has led to significant changes in state laws that have changed many methods of policing. One of the major changes has been a move toward accountability, specifically in force options. The mandated changes are leading to equipping officers with more less than lethal options to assist in better serving our communities, protecting our officers, and citizens from serious injury during those unfortunate events where force is necessary to effect an arrest. In the interest of transparency during the times the equipment is deployed, cataloguing the use of, and documenting the details of the use, are equally important in maintaining our community’s trust. As stated, the department does budget for these types of items; however, they are expensive to purchase as technological changes make the items that much more expensive. The funding provided by the JAG Grant would greatly benefit our organization by directly impacting our community and officers in bridging the gap to purchase much needed equipment.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The grant funding will allow for a revenue resource to purchase the identified equipment in the amount of $11,051.00.
FIVE-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN:
GOAL E: SAFETY Cathedral City is safe for all who live, work, visit and play in our community.