Rep. Angie Craig Secures $375,000 to Hire Three Additional Police Officers in Burnsville

BURNSVILLE, MN – U.S. Representative Angie Craig secured $375,000 to help hire three additional police officers in Burnsville.

Rep. Craig began her push to secure the funding in April as part of her work to promote public safety in Burnsville. The federal funding comes through the Department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring Program.

Thanks to the funding secured by Rep. Craig, the Burnsville Police Department will be able to hire two additional officers for their Behavioral Health Unit and one to enhance their community policing efforts.

“I’m determined to get law enforcement officers across the Second District the support they need, and that means building out our public safety workforce,” said Rep. Craig. “I’m proud we got this done for Burnsville, grateful for the partnership of  Burnsville Mayor Elizabeth Kautz and Burnsville Police Chief Tanya Schwartz and looking forward to continuing our work to keep Minnesotans safe.”

“It is an honor to be awarded the Community Oriented Policing Services Grant. We are grateful to the COPS Office, Congresswoman Angie Craig, and her team for their investment and partnership in the Burnsville community and the Police Department’s Behavioral Health Unit. Specialized responses, training and inclusive collaboration between the Burnsville Police and Fire departments, along with Dakota County Social Services and community-based resources drive our work. Among many positive impacts, we are excited that these positions will help us connect people to the right services at the right time, establish a point of contact for those suffering with mental illness, chemical dependency, homeless/unsheltered living conditions, and proactively look for solutions and continuously improve our service to the Burnsville community,” said Burnsville Police Chief Tanya Schwartz.

“I want to express our heartfelt gratitude to Congresswoman Craig for her diligence and commitment to the City of Burnsville. Her recent support of our application for the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant will make a significant difference in our community, and we are truly grateful for her efforts. This success would not have been possible without her support. The grant will play a crucial role in enhancing our Behavioral Health Unit, our team committed to supporting and encouraging mental wellbeing and health in our community. The call volume for our Behavioral Health Unit has continued to rise each month, underlining the importance of their work. With the awarded COPS grant, we can expand their resources which will enable us to connect individuals coping with mental illness, chemical dependency, homelessness, or unsheltered living conditions with the care they need most. We are deeply honored to have been awarded this grant. My appreciation extends to the COPS Office, Congresswoman Angie Craig, and her dedicated team for their invaluable investment and partnership in the Burnsville community. We are proud to have you as our representative, and we look forward to continuing our collaboration to make Burnsville an even better place to live and work,” said Burnsville Mayor Elizabeth Kautz.

Last year, Rep. Craig helped pass the bipartisan Public Safety Officer Support Act to expand benefits for officers with work-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and for families of officers who die by trauma-linked suicide.

Earlier this year, Rep. Craig secured funding to expand mental health resources for Shakopee police officers. Rep. Craig also secured funding last year to help West St. Paul and South St. Paul hire additional police officers and promote community policing efforts.

Click here to learn more about Burnsville’s COPS Hiring Grant.

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