The Chief of Police for the Houston Police Department (HPD) recommends that City Council approve an ordinance authorizing the application for and acceptance of grant funds through the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for the FY19 PSN - Intelligence-Led Policing Makes Communities Safer Grant. The grant period becomes effective October 1, 2019, and ends on September 30, 2022, for a total of 36 months. DOJ will provide $1,000,000 in grant funding and does not require a cash or in-kind match.
The purpose of the FY19 PSN - Intelligence-Led Policing Makes Communities Safer Grant is to use grant funding over a period of three years to strengthen technical, analytical and intelligence support capabilities in order to hold criminals accountable for the crimes they commit. The funds will be used to create an Intelligence Center that will more efficiently combine the collection of social media and digital evidence with information obtained through other traditional and non-traditional investigative methods to develop a more accurate picture of criminal networks. This information will help organize investigative priorities and assign resources and operations.
The Houston Police Department also requests City Council to authorize the Chief of Police or his designee to act as the City’s representative in the application process with the authority to apply for, accept and expend the grant funds as awarded, and apply for, accept and expend all subsequent awards, if any, to extend the budget period, and to authorize the Mayor to execute all related agreements with the approval of the City Attorney in connection with the grant not to exceed five years.
Fiscal Note:
No Fiscal Note is required on grant items.
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Art Acevedo
Chief of Police