Representative Angie Craig Backs Effort to Secure Additional Funding for the Burnsville Police Department

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Representative Angie Craig announced her support of the Burnsville Police Department's application for a $625,000 grant from the COPS Hiring Program. This grant program is designed to provide funding directly to law enforcement agencies to hire additional career law enforcement officers in an effort to increase their community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts. In a letter to the Acting Director of the Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office), Craig argued that funding from the COPS Hiring Program Grant would allow the Burnsville Police Department to address ongoing staffing shortages and provide more proactive policing to the community.

"The City of Burnsville is currently experiencing a massive shortage of employees and the Burnsville Police Department needs to fill over 11 positions," wrote Representative Craig. "In addition to this shortage, the call load and complexity of calls often requires more officer time and inhibits the time available and necessary for complex and time-consuming response to crisis calls for service, stabilization, onsite assessments, and long-term support for family members and those in crisis. It also prevents the time available for proactive policing initiatives."

"The COPS Hiring Program would allow the Burnsville Police Department to address capacity issues and provide crucial support to call response time and would assist in addressing behavioral health needs and meeting community expectations," Craig concluded. "I fully support the Burnsville Police Department's application for the COPS Hiring Program and request that you give this application all due consideration."

"Complexity of calls and call load can inhibit the time available for proactive policing initiatives. Securing grant funding will support Community Engagement efforts and our Behavioral Health Unit response. It is more important than ever before to engage in community policing endeavors to continue to build relationships, trust and legitimacy with our community," said Burnsville Police Chief Tanya Schwartz. "Adding staff to our BHU Team will help to increase safe interactions between police and those suffering from mental health crisis, provide the right services at the right time, increase access to social services, community engagement and public trust. In addition we are working to decrease community impact of untreated mental health crisis, and decrease repeat calls involving people with mental health crisis or illness. Burnsville is grateful to Congresswoman Craig for her support of law enforcement."

In Congress, Representative Craig has made it a priority to ensure that local police departments have the funding they need to do their jobs safely and effectively. Earlier this year, Craig helped introduce theInvest to Protect Act, a bipartisan bill to provide $50 million in grants for small and mid-sized police departments to invest in training, equipment, personnel support, and mental health resources. More recently, Craig helped to introduce and pass legislation to expand the Public Safety Officers' Benefit (PSOB) program after meeting Second District constituent Katie Slifko andhighlighting her story.

You can find the full text of the letter

Dear Acting Director Chapman,

I am writing to strongly urge you to consider the Burnsville Police Department's application for the COPS Hiring Program grant. The Burnsville Police Department is applying for five FTE police officer positions under this opportunity. This grant would cover $125,000 per position over a three-year period, totaling $625,000 for all five positions.

The City of Burnsville is currently experiencing a massive shortage of employees and the Burnsville Police Department needs to fill over 11 positions. In addition to this shortage, the call load and complexity of calls often requires more officer time and inhibits the time available and necessary for complex and time-consuming response to crisis calls for service, stabilization, onsite assessments, and long-term support for family members and those in crisis. It also prevents the time available for proactive policing initiatives.

Through the COPS Hiring Program, the Burnsville Police Department would be able to hire for critical officer positions. Three police officer positions would be assigned to the Community Engagement/Behavioral Health Unit (CEBHU). The CEBHU works to support and enhance mental health and wellness, reduce stigma, and collaborate with the Fire Department, Dakota County, and mental health professionals to reduce repeated emergency calls for service by providing individuals with the right services and resources at the right time. Two police officer positions would be assigned to the patrol unit to better enhance community policing and community engagement efforts. All five positions would support the department in achieving their mission of Working Together to Make a Difference Through Excellence in Policing by providing trusted service with dignity and respect.

The COPS Hiring Program would allow the Burnsville Police Department to address capacity issues and provide crucial support to call response time and would assist in addressing behavioral health needs and meeting community expectations. I fully support the Burnsville Police Department's application for the COPS Hiring Program and request that you give this application all due consideration.

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