Changes at Trump's DOJ could shift which local police agencies get grants

The Justice Department is shaking up the priorities for a fashionable assistance programme that provides millions of dollars successful assistance to budget-strapped section constabulary departments crossed America, according to nationalist documents reviewed by CBS News.

In a information expanse for the Community Policing Development microgrant program, the Trump medication eliminated connection that encouraged constabulary agencies to question national wealth for initiatives to assistance "underserved populations," physique spot successful police, boost diverseness successful constabulary departments and enactment assemblage unit intervention.

Instead, the medication lists "immigration and borderline security," "violent transgression prevention" and "uplifting the representation of the instrumentality enforcement profession" arsenic programs that are priorities for the highly sought-after grants, which are administered by the Justice Department's Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) division.

The instructions to section constabulary departments for backing successful 2025 people a noticeable displacement from the guidance issued by the Justice Department during the Biden medication a twelvemonth earlier. 

The 2024 guidance prioritized efforts astatine "building spot and legitimacy with the community" and "community unit intervention" initiatives, which see efforts to combat racism, trauma, poorness and different triggers to violence.

The Trump medication has shifted the assistance instructions for 2025 to invitation constabulary to marque a compelling statement that the wealth volition assistance stiffen borderline security, trim convulsive crime, amended constabulary departments' nationalist image, enactment "opioids and cause marketplace interruption" and different priorities.  

Both the 2024 and 2025 instructions person an "Open Topic Area" for assistance applications that don't acceptable into immoderate of the listed categories.

Portions of the information sheets for the Community Policing Development microgrant programme successful 2024 and 2025. Justice Department

The alteration of connection raises the imaginable of a melodramatic displacement successful which constabulary agencies are granted wealth and what programs are approved for national help.

The Justice Department's COPS assemblage policing improvement grants programme has awarded much than $67 cardinal to dozens of constabulary agencies since 2023, including for immoderate cities arsenic ample arsenic New York, Boston and Los Angeles, and those arsenic tiny arsenic Bluefield, W.Va., and Bellevue, Neb., according to a reappraisal by CBS News.

The displacement could imperil wealth from immoderate projects that person been highly touted successful tiny and ample U.S. cities.

"These are immoderate important changes," said Chiraag Baines, a erstwhile Justice Department lawyer and Biden medication aide. "There's a broader interaction to this than conscionable assistance money. It's a connection astir priorities and it could promote constabulary to springiness little precedence to definite programs and initiatives if they deliberation the Administration is going to beryllium hostile to them."

Baines said the newly-listed priorities for projects combatting convulsive transgression and opioid maltreatment are important. But helium added the caller connection encouraging constabulary to use for wealth for projects that "uplift the representation of instrumentality enforcement" is simply a alteration "that truly confuses the issue. Police should beryllium moving to physique spot and cooperation."

Communities person proudly announced their assistance awards for "community unit interventions" during the Biden administration.

Cleveland Heights, Ohio, touted a programme that got a 2023 assistance arsenic a palmy inaugural to scope at-risk youths. The city's announcement of the assistance said the $175,000 grant would beryllium utilized for "foot patrols successful violence-impacted areas and forming a caller outreach and mentorship programme for Cleveland Heights."

St. Petersburg, Fla., constabulary are among the dozens of departments and cities to person grants for initiatives to physique "trust and legitimacy with the community" since 2021, including an astir $174,000 assistance successful 2022. 

The bureau told CBS News it utilized the assistance to "support 20 non-profit younker sports leagues." The constabulary section besides "collaborated with the Tampa Bay Rays Baseball squad to connection softball programs for at-risk girls, expanding entree and participation."

St. Petersburg won different $175,000 COPS grant, for constabulary to assistance "underserved populations" successful 2023. The section told CBS News it utilized the wealth for "arts and acquisition mentorship" for youth.

The changes people a paradigm shift, and person inflamed disapproval from legislature Democrats. Rep. Glenn Ivey, a Democrat who was erstwhile a authorities authoritative successful Maryland, told CBS News, "It is truly a marked alteration successful priorities from the past administration. Local communities number connected these funds to augment their assemblage policing efforts. Safer communities commencement with spot and information not fearfulness and distrust. COPS grants should physique up the narration betwixt instrumentality enforcement and the communities they serve, not teardrop them apart."

A erstwhile Justice Department authoritative who served successful anterior administrations told CBS News the shifting of assistance criteria is communal erstwhile the section changes leadership. But the authoritative said the displacement distant from assemblage unit involution programs is simply a "recipe for depriving instrumentality enforcement of the leads and witnesses that tin lick cases and forestall crime. Community constabulary cuts transgression due to the fact that radical spot the constabulary capable to enactment with them."

Justice Department officials declined to reply circumstantial questions astir the changes successful assistance exertion language.

A spokeswoman told CBS News successful a written statement, "Under the absorption of Attorney General Bondi, the COPS bureau is committed to highlighting the important enactment that our instrumentality enforcement partners bash and to supporting instrumentality enforcement done hiring and assistance assistance." 

A reappraisal of anterior COPS grants announcements shows a displacement of connection aft then-President Joe Biden took office. The connection successful the 2022 COPS hiring assistance information expanse for constabulary departments eliminated references from the archetypal Trump medication that specified wealth was disposable for initiatives that focused connected homeland information and school-based policing, and added connection prioritizing "diversity training" projects.

Even successful a distinctively polarized governmental climate, national COPS grants stay overwhelmingly fashionable and highly pursued by section constabulary agencies. Grant awards are regularly touted by members of legislature from some parties and publically announced by section officials arsenic victories for the community.

A bipartisan radical of national legislators has introduced a measure to beef up backing for wide COPS grants. Rep. Pat Ryan, a New York Democrat whose territory includes smaller communities successful the Hudson Valley, co-sponsored the measure and said, "Far excessively often, tiny and midsized constabulary departments similar ours deficiency the resources they need."

Rep. Zach Nunn, an Iowa Republican who co-sponsored the measure, wrote, "Every Iowa municipality deserves beardown nationalist safety, careless of size oregon geography, and I'm arrogant to assistance pb this bipartisan effort to boost hiring and resources for instrumentality enforcement successful our tiny and agrarian communities." Nunn's announcement said the connection would "reauthorize the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) programme with treble the magnitude of national funding."

A spokeswoman for the Alexandria, Va., constabulary department, which received a $175,000 assistance past twelvemonth to assistance service "underserved populations," told CBS News, "The Department of Justice COPS Office plays a captious relation successful supporting instrumentality enforcement agencies crossed the country. Their backing and method assistance person been instrumental successful helping departments physique long-standing relationships betwixt constabulary and the communities they serve."

Some metropolis officials and constabulary departments declined to remark connected their national COPS assistance awards, including Dearborn, Mich., which received an $88,816 assistance for "building trust" successful constabulary successful 2023.