Fremont City Council Meeting: 11/07/23 07:00 PM
3300 Capitol Avenue Div/Dept: Police Department
Fremont, CA 94538 Category: Grants
SCHEDULED
Sponsors:
COUNCIL STAFF REPORT (ID # 5009) DOC ID: 5009
Updated: 11/2/2023 5:34 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 1
ACCEPTANCE OF BSCC ORT GRANT - Adopt a Resolution Accepting the California Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) Organized Retail Theft (ORT) Grant and Authorizing the City Manager or Designee to Execute the Grant Agreement and Take Any Necessary Implementing Actions Contact Persons:
Name: Johanna Canaday Sean Washington
Title: Manager - Criminal Intelligence &
Analysis
Police Chief
Div/Dept: Police Department Police Department
Phone: 510-790-6976 510-790-6969
E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Executive Summary: The California Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) has awarded the Fremont Police Department $2,453,958 to establish a Real Time Information Center (RTIC) under the Organized Retail Theft (ORT) Prevention Grant Program. Staff recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution to accept and appropriate the grant funds and to authorize the City Manager or designee to execute the Grant Agreement and take any necessary implementing actions.
BACKGROUND: The State Budget Act of 2022 (Senate Bill 154, Chapter 43, Statutes of 2022) established the Organized Retail Theft Prevention Grant Program. Funding in the amount of $242,250,000 is available to California city police, sheriff, and probation departments to support local law enforcement agencies in preventing and responding to organized retail theft, motor vehicle theft, motor vehicle accessory theft, or cargo theft.
Fremont Police Department submitted a grant proposal in July 2023 for approximately $2.5 million dollars and was one of 27 agencies granted an award in the medium-scope funding category. The grant reporting period runs from October 1, 2023, to December 31, 2026.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS: The expansion of technology and data-driven crime strategies will improve the Fremont Police Department’s efficiency and effectiveness in mitigating ORT - related crime trends. The confluence of Fremont’s significant business and housing growth, Police staffing dynamics, and increases in ORT-related crime, the Fremont Police Department anticipates needing additional resources to address this issue. The RTIC will increase support to officers, provide investigative assistance, and expand analytical and technological capacity throughout the department.
The grant application articulated the requests listed below to fulfill the Police Chief’s pledge to stand up a Real Time Information Center to mitigate ORT-related crime. The following requested items were awarded funding:
• Salaries and benefits for two full-time RTIC personnel; • Subscriptions and services will include an investigative platform that searches and analyzes online data in various publicly available data sources, and an agreement extension of our existing real-time data analytics platform, Peregrine, which Council Staff Report (ID # 5009) Meeting of November 7, 2023 Updated: 11/2/2023 5:34 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 2
integrates all our internal data systems for ease of use and synthesis of information ; and
• Equipment will include a video wall to provide critical visual technology of video feeds and communications; property tracking devices providing GPS location information; two laptop computers; and two handheld radios.
With the funding from the ORT grant for the RTIC, Fremont Police will be able to significantly enhance our department’s ability to deter, detect, and respond to criminal activity more effectively and efficiently. We will use a range of integrated technologies to provide real-time intelligence to responding officers through our extensive camera network, a real-time data integration platform, and various other resources. We believe this will help prevent and reduce ORT in support of our community, officers, and the region. Fremont Police Department will provide quarterly reports of clearly defined and measurable objectives for this grant. A few measurables include reduced ORT incidents, collaboration with store/property managers, providing crime prevention information to the community, and internal effectiveness of RTIC response.
The policy of the Fremont Police Department is to utilize ALPR technology to capture and store digital license plate data and images while recognizing the established privacy and civil rights of the public. All data and images gathered by the ALPR cameras are for law enforcement use only. The use of cameras and license plate readers will adhere to state law and established Fremont Police Department policies publicly available at the below links.
Community Camera System:
https://public.powerdms.com/FremontPD/tree/documents/1478435
Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs):
https://public.powerdms.com/FremontPD/tree/documents/1556880
FISCAL IMPACT: The ORT grant funds are available from October 1, 2023, to December 31, 2026, and must be spent in accordance with the budget proposal in the Fremont Police Department application, which includes salary and benefits for two RTIC Specialists for the reporting period, three years of various software subscriptions to support data analysis, a video wall for the RTIC, and related technology hardware and software.
Certain equipment and/or software procured with these funds could have ongoing service/maintenance costs, such as annual software licenses and monthly cloud storage fees. Depending on the purchase and the amount supported, the costs will vary. At the end of the grant period, these service costs will be requested in the Police Department General Fund budget to the extent new funding becomes available.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The recommended action is exempt from and not subject to review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because, without limitation, it is not a “project” as defined in CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(2) and/or 15378(b)(5) and as it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity may have a significant effect on the environment per CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), each as a separate and independent basis for CEQA compliance.
Council Staff Report (ID # 5009) Meeting of November 7, 2023 Updated: 11/2/2023 5:34 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 3
ATTACHMENTS:
• 2023.11.07 - Draft Resolution BSCC ORT Grant
• 23-27 ORTP Grant Agreement - Fremont Police Department 1152-23 • Attachment-E-2-Organized-Retail-Theft-Prevention-Grant-Funding-Award- Recommendations
• Attachment-E-4-Senate-Bill-154-Organized-Retail-Theft-Prevention-Grant-Program • Attachment-E-3-Organized-Retail-Theft-Prevention-Grant-Project-Summaries
RECOMMENDATION: Adopt a resolution authorizing the City Manager, or her designee, to accept the Board of State and Community Corrections Organized Retail Theft Prevention grant in the amount of $2,453,958, recognize the revenue in the Miscellaneous Operating Grants Fund, appropriate the funds to the Police Department, and execute the Grant Agreement and take any and all necessary implementing actions required by the BSCC.