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Washington, D.C. -- Rep. Rush Holt (NJ-12) today congratulated the Township of North Brunswick on its receipt of $45,861 from the Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing (COPS) “Secure Our Schools” program.
“This type of direct federal assistance to localities is vital in helping create a secure environment in which our children can learn and helps build a respect for law enforcement among students,” said Holt.
The “Secure Our Schools” grant can provide up to 50 percent of the total cost for municipalities to install locks, lighting, and other equipment that can help deter crime, or to cover 50 percent of the cost of security assessments and training.
“The most important obligations of a town are the safety of its residents and the education of its children,” said North Brunswick Mayor Mac Womack. “This grant will help us make sure that our children are educated in a safe and secure environment.”
Unfortunately, the original COPS program—which was designed to put 100,000 additional police on America’s streets and provide the equipment law enforcement officers need—has been gutted. From a program high of $1.42 billion in 1997, funding for the program has been slashed by 2/3 for fiscal year 2006.
“Had the Bush administration not gutted the COPS program over the last five years, our communities would be safer still,” said Holt. “We need to get serious about protecting our communities from crime and terrorism, and revitalizing the COPS program should be our first step in that process.”
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