Pappas Welcomes $82,000 in Federal Support For Manchester Police Department

Today, Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01) welcomed the arrival of $82,000 in federal support for the Manchester Police Department from the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) for the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act Program.

These federal funds will help Manchester improve mental health and wellness services for law enforcement with training and technical assistance related to peer mentoring mental health and wellness, and suicide prevention programs.

"These federal funds to support law enforcement could not come at a more important time," said Congressman Chris Pappas. "We are asking our law enforcement to do more with less each day as we deal with the COVID-19 pandemic and the addiction and substance misuse crisis that continues to ravage our communities. I'm pleased these funds are being made available, and I will continue to push to get New Hampshire's public safety community the resources they need to do their jobs and keep our communities safe."

Congressman Pappas opposes President Trump's FY 2021 budget proposal cutting $170 million cut and reorganization of the COPS program, and $380 million in cuts to support for state, local and tribal law enforcement. These cuts were also present in the President's FY 2020 budget proposal.

Pappas has been a leader in Congress in the fight for increased funding to state and local governments - including local police departments - to avoid cutting critical services like public safety, laying off police and other public employees, or increasing taxes to make up for revenue shortfalls from COVID-19.

In July, the House approved Rep. Pappas's amendment to strengthen community-oriented policing with an amendment to an FY 2021 appropriations package he authored to set aside $10 million in DOJ funding to assist small and mid-sized police departments in earning or renewing accreditation from state, regional, tribal or national police accreditation organizations. This funding will help small and mid-sized law enforcement agencies to update their standards and best practices to strengthen accountability, enhance community trust, and improve operational effectiveness.

Pappas introduced similar standalone legislation earlier that month. The Establishing Accreditation Grants for Law Enforcement (EAGLE) Act establishes a new grant program that small and mid-sized police departments (those with fewer than 350 employees) can utilize to cover the cost of earning accreditation. The bill is the product of a series of conversations in recent weeks between Congressman Pappas, New Hampshire law enforcement officials, and reform advocates around the pressing issue of police reform. All New Hampshire municipal police departments would qualify for these funds.

The COPS Office is part of the Department of Justice and is responsible for promoting community policing across the country. Founded in 1994, the COPS Office has invested more than $14 billion in community policing, with grants awarded to over 13,000 states, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of over 134,000 officers and provide additional resources including publications, training, and technical assistance.