Sens. Udall, Bennet Announce Nearly $30 Million in Funding to Aid Colorado Law Enforcement, Criminal Justice Efforts

Washington, DC - United States Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet announced today that Colorado will receive $29.6 million in Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. These funds will help local and state law enforcement authorities prevent and control crime and improve the criminal justice system.

"This important funding-nearly $30 million for Colorado, much of it directly allocated for municipal and county administrators-will keep Colorado crime fighters in their jobs working to protect our neighborhoods and take criminals off our streets," said Senator Udall. "Today's Department of Labor jobless report, which shows an additional 651,000 lost jobs in February, underscores why Congress must continue to work to turn this economy around, create jobs and minimize the impacts of this difficult period on our local communities."

"In these difficult times, we can't afford to let shrinking budgets impair our ability to fight crime and thwart violence in our streets," said Senator Bennet. "While these funds won't prevent every layoff or stave off every cut, they will help keep more police officers in their jobs and on the beat. We're not only working to turn our economy around now - we're also investing in our cities and communities so that they can emerge from this crisis stronger and more prosperous than before."

To view Recovery Act JAG allocations for Colorado counties and municipalities, please click here.

The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program is the primary provider of federal criminal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions. JAG funds support all components of the criminal justice system, from multijurisdictional drug and gang task forces to crime prevention and domestic violence programs, courts, corrections, treatment, and justice information sharing initiatives.

The JAG Program was established by the U.S. Department of Justice in honor of Police Office Edward "Eddie" R. Byrne. Officer Byrne was murdered while on duty for the New York City Police Department (NYPD).