Dear Mr. Chairman and Senator Graham,
I am writing on behalf of the members of the Fraternal Order of Police to advise you of our strong support of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and its Director, Hugh T. Clements, Jr.
For three decades now, the cornerstone of our national policing strategy has been community-oriented policing. The work of the COPS Office is vital to State and local law enforcement agencies and, by extension, to the safety of our communities. The COPS Office administers a program that assists local and State law enforcement agencies by providing funding for the hiring of new officers—which is critically important to our profession which is struggling with a recruitment and retention crisis.
The hiring program is just one of the many valuable programs and resources provided to local and State law enforcement. Others include the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act, the Supporting and Treating Officers in Crisis Act, the National Blue Alert Network, expanded access to active shooter training, free training for State and local agencies through the Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center (CRI-TAC), as well as activities authorized by the Law Enforcement De-Escalation Training Act, which was signed into law at the end of the 117th Congress. The communities we protect and the agencies that serve them benefit directly from the work of the COPS Office.
Given the importance of these programs, we further urge this Committee to consider and favorably report S. 1306, the “COPS Reauthorization Act,” as introduced and without amendment. The legislation has been on the Committee’s agenda for several weeks and we believe it is time to put the bill to a vote.
On behalf of the more than 373,000 members of the Fraternal Order of Police, I urge the Members of the Committee to favorably report this legislation. If I can provide any additional information in support of this legislation, please do not hesitate to contact me or Executive Director Jim Pasco in our Washington, D.C. office.
Sincerely,
Patrick Yoes
National President
cc: Chris Southwood, President, Illinois State Lodge
Rocky Nowaczyk, National Trustee, Illinois State Lodge
John Blackmon, President, South Carolina State Lodge
Terry Gainey, National Trustee, South Carolina State Lodge