FEINGOLD-BACKED AMENDMENTS TO FUND CRIME-FIGHTING
PROGRAMS PASS SENATE
Amendments Support Additional Funding for Byrne and COPS Grant Programs
March 14, 2008
Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Senate passed two amendments to the
2009 budget, both cosponsored by U.S. Senator Russ Feingold, to include
additional funding in the budget for two programs instrumental in helping
state and local law enforcement agencies fight violent crime. Feingold
cosponsored an amendment by Senators Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) and Dianne
Feinstein (D-CA) to provide $906 million for the Byrne Justice Assistance
Grant program. Byrne Grants have assisted the creation of drug task
forces, drug courts, education and prevention programs, community prosecution
programs, and many other efforts to reduce violent crime and drug abuse.
Feingold also cosponsored an amendment, sponsored by Joe Biden (D-DE),
to provide $1.15 billion for the Community Oriented Policing Services
(COPS) program to train new officers, invest in crime-fighting technologies,
and fight methamphetamine abuse. Feingold, a member of the Senate Budget
Committee, said last week that funding for local law enforcement was
one of his top priorities for the budget. The Senate passed the budget
late last night.
“Day in and day out, communities depend on our law enforcement
professionals to keep them safe and be fully prepared to respond in
emergencies,” Feingold said. “The dedicated service they
provide cannot happen without support from the federal government. We
must provide adequate funding for successful programs like the COPS
program and the Byrne program in order to provide the tools, technology,
and training our law enforcement professionals need to protect our communities.”
The president’s proposed budget recommends eliminating funding
for these programs entirely, replacing them with new, untested, and
underfunded programs. Over the past several years, the President’s
budget proposals have consistently sought to slash funding for Byrne
and COPS grants. Feingold has fought these cuts because law enforcement
officials in Wisconsin have told him these programs provide essential
resources to help them better protect Wisconsin communities.
“Unfortunately, the President’s proposal to cut funding
for these successful crime-fighting programs is nothing new,”
Feingold said. “Congress has rightly rejected the President’s
cuts to these programs in the past, and I’m working with my colleagues
to include this critical funding in the 2009 budget.”
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