WASHINGTON – Arizona Senators Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly announced that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has awarded the Pima County, Casa Grande, and Glendale law enforcement agencies a total of $3,375,000 to hire additional full-time law enforcement professionals, funded through DOJ’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring Program.
Pima County was awarded $1,750,000 to hire 14 law enforcement professionals, Casa Grande was awarded $1,250,000 to hire 10, and Glendale was awarded $375,000 to hire three.
“Arizona’s law enforcement officers bravely risk their lives every day to keep us safe. Today’s grants will expand hiring and rehiring of police officers in Pima County, Casa Grande, and Glendale – helping ensure our communities are safe and secure,” said Sinema.
“As the son of two police officers, I know how critical it is for law enforcement to have the resources needed to keep our families and communities safe. The funding we secured will allow Arizona cities to hire and train more police officers without putting a strain on local budgets. I’ll continue pushing leaders of both parties to ensure that our law enforcement have the funds and staffing needed to do their jobs safely and effectively,” said Kelly.
“We applaud Senators Sinema and Kelly for helping us to secure this important $1.75 million COPS grant that will allow the County to hire an additional 14 sheriff’s deputies. Simply put, we need more deputies on the beat and this critical grant helps us do just that. Senators Sinema and Kelly continue to be tireless supporters and advocates for the County and we are grateful for their leadership in making our County the safest and best place to live in Arizona,” said Pima County Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bronson.
“The City of Casa Grande is committed to advancing top-tier public safety for our residents through effective community policing citywide,” said Casa Grande Mayor Craig McFarland. “The COPS Hiring Program Award will help fund efforts critical to the recruitment and retention of more officers to further enhance neighborhood crime prevention.”
“This COPS Hiring Program Award will continue to ensure that the residents of Glendale and our neighbors receive essential public safety services through improvements to our hiring practices and equipment upgrades,” said Glendale Mayor Jerry Weiers. “The City of Glendale recognizes with much appreciation our two Arizona Senators who value and support our law enforcement community.”
The COPS Hiring Program is a competitive award program intended to reduce crime and advance public safety through community policing. These COPS Hiring Program funds will be disbursed directly to law enforcement agencies to hire or rehire additional career law enforcement officers and deputies to enhance their community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts.
