Justice Department Announces $553,000 in Recovery Act Awards for Local Communities

WASHINGTON, July 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs (OJP) today announced more than $553,000 in grant funding to 22 additional local governments under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program.  A total of 3,416 units of local government are eligible for a direct JAG Recovery Act award.  Funding is used to prevent and control crime and improve the criminal justice system.

"This funding will play an important role in helping local communities address their criminal justice challenges," said Assistant Attorney General Laurie Robinson. "These funds will help our partners fight crime and build safer communities."

The JAG Program is the primary provider of federal criminal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions and is managed by OJP's Bureau of Justice Assistance.  JAG funds support all components of the criminal justice system, from multi-jurisdictional drug and gang task forces to crime prevention and domestic violence programs, as well as courts, corrections, treatment, and justice information sharing initiatives.  Projects may address crime through the provision of services directly to individuals and/or communities and by improving the effectiveness and efficiency of criminal justice systems, processes, and procedures.  

"Through the JAG Program, the Bureau of Justice Assistance reaches thousands of cities, counties, and tribes each year to prevent and control crime in local communities.  It is with great pleasure that we make these awards today," said Acting BJA Director, James H. Burch II.

The procedure for allocating JAG grants is based on a formula of population and violent crime statistics, in combination with a minimum allocation to ensure that each state and territory receives an appropriate share of funding.  Sixty percent of the allocation is awarded directly to a state and 40 percent is set aside for units of local government.  For more details on the JAG Program visit http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA/recoveryJAG/recoveryjag.html.  The list of 22 local jurisdictions and award amounts are as follows:

The Office of Justice Programs, headed by Assistant Attorney General Laurie O. Robinson, provides federal leadership in developing the nation's capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice, and assist victims.  OJP has seven components: the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of Justice Statistics; the National Institute of Justice; the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; the Office for Victims of Crime; the Community Capacity Development Office, and the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking.  More information about OJP can be found at http://www.ojp.gov.

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SOURCE Office of Justice Programs - U.S. Department of Justice