Money will go to Kentucky’s universities and law enforcement agencies

Washington, DC – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell announced Tuesday that his requests for $5.8 million in funding for several crime-prevention and university projects in Kentucky were passed by the Senate. The money is included in the FY’08 Commerce, Justice and Science (CJS) Appropriations bill, which now must be approved by a House/Senate Conference Committee.

McConnell, a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, secured funding for the following Kentucky law enforcement assistance projects:



• $500,000 for the University of Louisville Center for Child Abuse Assessment and Prevention. UofL officials say that as many as 50 percent of deaths from physical child abuse and neglect are unrecorded. The university would like to establish a center to develop scientific, objective and reliable methods for detecting child abuse.



• $850,000 for the Louisville Regional Computer Forensics Lab. This funding will help UofL purchase equipment and technology for the Louisville Regional Computer Forensics Lab. McConnell previously secured $3 million in 2003 to establish the lab, which is part of the FBI network and is used to process large amounts of data for the agency.



• $275,000 for the Barren County Sheriff’s Department Communication Improvement Project. This funding will enable the Barren County Sheriff’s Department to purchase mobile data terminals and other communication equipment to support its law enforcement efforts.



• $150,000 for the City of Murray Police Department. Law enforcement agencies rely upon modern technology for everything from enforcing traffic laws to investigating crimes. Unfortunately, not all local agencies can afford the expensive technologies that will help officers communicate with each other and better respond to emergencies. This funding will help the Murray Police Department purchase a Computer Aided Dispatch System to improve its ability to alert officers of emergencies and to improve response times, thereby enhancing the safety of all in Murray.



• $250,000 for the Ohio County Sheriff’s Department Mobile Data Terminal Installation Project. The Ohio County Sheriff’s Department will use the funds to purchase mobile data terminals for their vehicles, which will enhance officer safety, reduce investigation time, improve interaction with the Kentucky State Police, and ensure the security of communication systems.



• $750,000 for the Henderson County Sheriff’s Department. These funds will enable the Henderson County Sheriff’s Department to upgrade the equipment used by its deputies to help provide emergency response services to the citizens of Henderson County.



• $500,000 for the University of Kentucky Legal Education Access Program. UK is hoping to help young people from low-income families in rural Kentucky pursue careers in law. This funding will allow university officials to visit prospective students in their communities to encourage them to study law. It also will help prepare these students to succeed in law school by offering a program to strengthen writing skills, which often is the most challenging aspect of law school.



• $500,000 for the Northern Kentucky University Crime Prevention through Internet Security Solutions Project. Northern Kentucky University has developed a project that aims to support crime prevention and control by increasing the security of the Internet. This funding will enable university officials to continue their critical work, which will improve security for online records systems used by law enforcement agencies and court systems.



“This funding will aid Kentucky’s law enforcement agencies with crime prevention and detection,” McConnell said. “The money will also be used by Kentucky’s universities to study and enhance crime fighting methods in hopes of reducing crime rates in the future.”



Senator McConnell also secured funding in the bill for two additional university projects.



• $1.3 million for the University of Louisville Rejuvenating Injured Tissues for Enhanced Wound Healing Project. UofL plans to use the funding to help identify factors that hinder the wound healing process and then develop counter-measures to eliminate these factors so that wounds can self-heal. The funding will be useful to trauma victims who do not have immediate access to traditional emergency medical care.



• $750,000 for the Western Kentucky University Environmental Monitoring Network. WKU currently operates the Kentucky Climate Center, which is the official State Climate Office. The university will use this money to continue to develop a monitoring system that will collect real-time observations through a statewide grid of stations. The center will collect and analyze data, distribute the information over the Internet, and provide applications to support crop and livestock management, drought monitoring, flood warnings, and disaster assessment. “Weather can have a devastating affect on our lives, and this funding will be used by WKU to continue the development of a monitoring system that will collect real-time observations, helping with crop and livestock management, as well as flood warnings and disaster assessment," McConnell said.

The CJS Appropriations Bill now goes to a House/Senate Conference Committee for consideration.

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