DATE:
October 1, 2024
TO:
Adam Politzer, Interim City Manager
FROM:
Jeff Jennings, Chief of Police
SUBJECT:
Resolution Of The City Council Of The City Of Emeryville Authorizing The City Manager To Accept A Grant Award Retroactively On Behalf Of The Police Department From The FY2019 Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) In The Amount Of $9,190.80 For Funds Related To Police Portable Radios Recommendation
Staff recommends the City Council adopt the attached resolution approving the grant award funding retroactively from the FY2019 Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) in the amount of $9,190.80 for two police Motorola portable radios. The Police Department was awarded this grant funding from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office who administers the JAG grant programs. The equipment requested would be used by the patrol staff to increase officer safety, to communicate effectively with the dispatch center, and ensure effective communication equipment is available to the police department staff.
Background
The JAG program is an annual pass-through grant from the federal government. Alameda County Sheriff’s Office manages the grant and disperses funding to municipalities in the County for equipment, training, and resources as needed. The Police Department applied for and was granted $9,190.80 in funding for two (2) Motorola APX6000 police portable radios.
The Police Department uses the Motorola APX6000 radios daily. The radios are approved for use by the Alameda County radio administrators. The police department has approximately 50 of these radios and are short in the total number of radios needed for all staff. The radios are expensive, and this grant opportunity allows the police department to ensure all employees have a fully functional radio while balancing the fiscal constraints projected in the coming years.
The grant period is July 1, 2019, through September 30, 2022.
Discussion
The benefits of accepting this grant award will directly impact safety in our City. The portable radios are used daily by all field staff members. This is an essential piece of equipment for the field services staff.
Like all tools and technologies available to law enforcement, the make and model of this specific portable radio has to be functional, durable, rugged, and water resistant. For that, these radios are expensive and it’s challenging for the police department to replace the radios when they can no longer be repaired. This grant is an excellent opportunity for the police department to use supplemental funding to effectively equip the staff.
This grant was awarded by the administrating agency, the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, in late 2019. The award and the subsequent procurement process took place primarily in the first few months of 2020, during the height of the COVID 19 pandemic. The majority of the police department administrative staff time was committed to managing the impacts of the pandemic and ensuring the safety of the staff and the community, so there was an oversight in seeking City Council approval to accept this funding at that time. The police department is seeking City Council approval to accept this grant funding, retroactively because of that oversight.
In early 2020, the two Motorola radios were purchased by the police department through regular procurement means, using the sole source exception. Since that time, the portable radios were received and have been used of staff in the field continuously.
Fiscal Impact
The fiscal impact to the City was the initial expenditure of costs associated with the purchase of the proposed equipment. However, since the FY2019 JAG grant operates through a reimbursement process, there were no real impact to the budget. Some police staff time was required to administer the awarded grant, but this staff time will be considered part of their normal duties. The initial expenditure for the equipment came from the FY19/20 budget. The City received the reimbursement check for $9,190.80 on 10/18/23 and it was deposited in FY23/24 budget.
Alameda County Sheriff has already reimbursed the City for the expense of the two portable radios.
Staff Communication with the Public
As of this time there has been no communication with the public as the grant award funding.
Conflict of Interest
None.
Conclusion
This grant program offered a great opportunity for the City of Emeryville, the Emeryville Police Department and to the Emeryville community. Staff recommends retroactively accepting the grant award to enhance our community safety capabilities within our community.
PREPARED BY: Jeff Jennings, Chief of Police
Oliver Collins, Captain
APPROVED AND FORWARDED TO THE
CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EMERYVILLE:
Adam Politzer, Interim City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
Resolution
Grant MOU
FY2019 JAG Grant Proposal
| October 1, 2024
City of Emeryville
CALIFORNIA
MEMORANDUM