HomeMy WebLinkAboutPR 24131: APPLYING FOR FY26 PROJECT SAFE NEIGHBORHOOD GRANT City of
ort rthar
www.PortArthurTx.gov
INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM
Date: January 6, 2025
To: The Honorable Mayor and City Council
Through: Ronald Burton, City Manager
From: Timothy W. Duriso, Chief of Police
RE: P.R. 24131 -Applying for FY26 Project Safe Neighborhood Grant
Introduction:
The intent of this Agenda Item is to authorize the City Manager to apply for the FY26 Project
Safe Neighborhood Grant.
Background:
The US Department of Justice has made available funding to support FY26 Project Safe
Neighborhood Block Grant Program. The grant allows for funds to be utilized to foster and
improve existing partnerships between Federal, State and local agencies, including the United
States Attorney's Office in each Federal judicial district, entities representing members of the
community affected by increased violence, victim's advocates, and researchers to create safer
neighborhoods through sustained reductions in violent crimes.
Budget Impact:
The grant is 100% funded, with a maximum funding of $150,000.00, with no cash match
requirement.
Recommendation:
It is recommended that City Council authorize the City Manager to apply for the FY26 Project
Safe Neighborhood Block Grant Program, as discussed and/or outline above.
"Remember,we are here to serve the Citizens of Port Arthur"
P.O.Box 1089 X Port Arthur,Texas 77641-1089 X 409.983.8101 X FAX 409.982.6743
P.R. No. 24131
01/06/2025 JLH
RESOLUTION NO.
A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO ALLOW
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO APPLY FOR THE FY 26 PROJECT
SAFE NEIGHBORHOOD GRANT, WITH NO CASH MATCH.
WHEREAS, Project Safe Neighborhood Grant was developed
to improve existing partnerships between Federal , State and
Local agencies , including the US Attorney' s Office in each
Federal Judicial District, entities representing members of
the community affected by increased violence, victims '
advocates, and researchers to create safer neighborhoods
through sustained reductions in violent crimes; and
WHEREAS, the program awards funding to develop and
execute comprehensive strategic plans to reduce violent
crimes, including enforcement of gun laws , and prioritizing
efforts focused on identified subsets of individuals or
organizations responsible for increasing violence in a
particular geographic area; and
WHEREAS, the program develops evidence-based and data-
driven intervention and prevention initiatives, including
juvenile justice projects and activities which may include
street-level outreach, conflict mediation, provision of
treatment and social services, and the changing of community
norms, in order to reduce violence; and
WHEREAS, the program also collects data on outcomes
achieved through the Program, including the effect on the
violent crime rate, incarceration rate, and recidivism rate;
and
WHEREAS, the Police Department feels that it would be in
the best interest of the citizens of Port Arthur to apply for
the said grant; and
WHEREAS, the grant offers a maximum funding of
$150, 000 . 00 , with no cash match requirement; however,
projects must begin on or after 10/1/25 and will be on a
reimbursable cost basis .
P.R. No. 24131
01/06/2025 JLH
Section 1. That the facts and opinions in the preamble
are true and correct .
Section 2. The City Council authorizes the City Manager
to allow the Police Department to apply for the FY26 Project
Safe Neighborhood Grant .
Section 3 . That a copy of the caption of this resolution
shall be spread upon the Minutes of the City Council .
READ, ADOPTED AND APPROVED on this day of January,
A.D. , 2025, at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the
City of Port Arthur, Texas, by the following vote: AYES:
Mayor:
Councilmembers :
NOES:
Thurman Bill Bartie
Mayor
ATTEST:
Sherri Bellard
City Secretary
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Roxann Pais Cotroneo
City Attorney
P.R. No. 24131
01/06/2025 JLH
APPROVED FOR MINISTRATION:
Ronald Bu on, CPM
City M
Timoth W. Duriso
Chief f Police
v
APPROVED AS TO AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS:
/0,4kcY
Lynda Boswell
Director of Finance
P.R. No. 24131
01/06/2025 JLH
EXHIBIT "A"
Name: Available
Project Safe Neighborhoods 12/16/2024
Grant Program, FY2026 Due Date
02/13/2025
Purpose:
The purpose of this announcement is to solicit applications for projects that are designed to create and foster safer
neighborhoods through a sustained reduction in violent crime, including, but not limited to, addressing criminal gangs and
felonious possession and use of firearms.
Available Funding:
Federal funds are authorized under 34 U.S.C. §60702 Project Safe Neighborhoods Block Grant Program (PSN). PSN funds are
made available through a Congressional appropriation to the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance.All
awards are subject to the availability of appropriated federal funds and any modifications or additional requirements that
may be imposed by law.
Eligible Organizations:
Applications may be submitted by public and private institutions of higher education, independent school districts, non-
profit corporations(including hospitals and faith-based organizations), and units of local government, which are defined as a
non-statewide governmental body with the authority to establish a budget and impose taxes.
All applications submitted by local law enforcement agencies/offices must be submitted by a unit of government affiliated
with the agency, including an authorizing resolution from that unit of government. For example, police departments must
apply under their municipal government, and community supervision and corrections departments, district attorneys, and
judicial districts must apply through their affiliated county government(or one of the counties, in the case of agencies that
serve more than one county).
Application Process:
Applicants must access the PSO's eGrants grant management website at hops://eGrants.gov.texas.gov to register and apply
for funding.
Key Dates:
Action
Funding Anouncemtent Release 12/16/2024
Online System Opening Date 12/16/2024
Final Date to Submit and Certify an Application 02/13/2025 at 5:00PM CST
Earliest Project Start Date 10/01/2025
Project Period:
Projects must begin on or after 10/01/2025 and may not exceed a 12-month project period.
Funding Levels
Minimum: None
Maximum: None
Match Requirement: None
Standards
Grantees must comply with standards applicable to this fund source cited in the Texas Grant Management Standards
(TxGMS), Federal Uniform Grant Guidance, and all statutes, requirements, and guidelines applicable to this funding.
Eligible Activities and Costs
Funds may only be used to foster and improve existing partnerships between federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial law
enforcement officials, including the United States Attorney in each Federal judicial district, prosecutors, and community-
based partners representing members of the community affected by increased violence,victims' advocates, and researchers
to create safer neighborhoods through sustained reductions in violent crimes by:
1. Developing and executing comprehensive strategic plans to reduce violent crimes, including the enforcement of gun
laws, and prioritizing efforts focused on identified subsets of individuals or organizations responsible for increasing
violence in a particular geographic area;
2. Developing evidence-based and data-driven intervention and prevention initiatives, including juvenile justice projects
and activities which may include street-level outreach, conflict mediation, provision of treatment and social services, and
the changing of community norms, in order to reduce violence and foster community trust in law enforcement entities;
and
3. Effectively utilizing intelligence and data to identify violent crime drivers and individuals at risk of violence victimization
or perpetration and collecting data on outcomes achieved through the Program, including the effect on the violent
crime rate, incarceration rate, and recidivism rate of the jurisdiction.
Eligible Costs:
1. Salary,wage, and fringe benefits of individuals supporting the PSN project;
2. Overtime compensation of individuals supporting the PSN project;
3.Workshops and events associated with the support of the PSN project(pending approval by Office of Justice Programs,
Bureau of Justice Assistance);
4.Travel associated with implementation and evaluation of the PSN project;
5. Equipment purchased to support the execution of the PSN project; and
6. Printing, publication, and duplication of materials that support the PSN project.
Program-Specific Requirements
Project Safe Neighborhoods Design Features
Applications must address 1 of 4 PSN design features:
Community Engagement.The main focus of this PSN design feature is programs that foster meaningful engagement
between and among communities, law enforcement, prosecutors,and other stakeholders as an essential component of an
effective violence reduction strategy. Ongoing engagement involves open communication and builds relationships,trust,
and shared public safety values between community members and law enforcement.
Focused and Strategic Enforcement.To address violent crime, PSN initiatives often focus strategic enforcement on a
limited number of problem places and the individuals driving violent crime.Violent crime is often driven by a small number
of prolific offenders;they are often involved in gangs, neighborhood crews, and violent street groups and are typically
concentrated in hotspots and small "micro-places" (e.g., a street segment with abandoned homes; a problem bar, gas
station, or convenience store; or an open-air drug market). In some jurisdictions, intimate partner violence is the main
violent crime concern. Critical elements of strategic enforcement include:
1. Understanding the most significant drivers of violence and resources;
2. Leveraging technology and analytics;
3. Developing and implementing enforcement strategies; and
4. Deterring others from engaging in violence(which could also be through public awareness about enforcement actions
and available assistance).
Prevention and Intervention. Effective PSN Teams engage in problem-solving approaches that address the reduction of
violent crime using all the tools at their disposal.Applicants should utilize strategies to address risk and protective factors,
which often involves building relationships with representatives of agencies and organizations most suited to provide
education, social services,job training and placement, reentry programs, or similar resources to those in need. Program
should include prevention and intervention activities that can provide individuals and families with skills, opportunities, and
alternatives that can ultimately help to reduce violent crime in communities.
Accountability.The ultimate goal of PSN is to reduce the level of violence in our communities.Analyzing and assessing
information about the incidence of violence and the effectiveness of strategies to address it are important for PSN's success
and credibility.Applicants addressing this PSN design feature are required to collect and analyze relevant data that focus on
outcomes—i.e. reduced violent crime.Applicants must monitor crime data over time as related to their local PSN Task
Force's targeted problems and/or targeted areas.
Gang Task Forces
The PSN program requires that 30 percent of funding be allocated to support gang task forces in the United States regions
experiencing a significant or increased presence of criminal or transnational organizations engaging in high levels of violent
crime,firearms offenses, human trafficking, and drug trafficking.Applications seeking to support gang task forces will be
required to provide information on the gang task force as well as list of participating agencies.
Eligibility Requirements
1. Local units of governments must comply with the Cybersecurity Training requirements described in Section 772.012 and
Section 2054.5191 of the Texas Government Code. Local governments determined to not be in compliance with the
cybersecurity requirements required by Section 2054.5191 of the Texas Government Code are ineligible for OOG grant funds
until the second anniversary of the date the local government is determined ineligible. Government entities must annually
certify their compliance with the training requirements using the Cybersecurity Training Certification for State and Local
Governments. A copy of the Training Certification must be uploaded to your eGrants application. For more information or to
access available training programs,visit the Texas Department of Information Resources Statewide Cybersecurity Awareness
Training_page.
2. Entities receiving funds from PSO must be located in a county that has an average of 90%or above on both adult and
juvenile dispositions entered into the computerized criminal history database maintained by the Texas Department of Public
Safety(DPS)as directed in the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Chapter 66.The disposition completeness percentage is
defined as the percentage of arrest charges a county reports to DPS for which a disposition has been subsequently reported
and entered into the computerized criminal history system.
Counties applying for grant awards from the Office of the Governor must commit that the county will report at least 90%of
convictions within five business days to the Criminal Justice Information System at the Department of Public Safety.
3. Eligible applicants operating a law enforcement agency must be current on reporting complete UCR data and the Texas
specific reporting mandated by 411.042 TGC,to the Texas Department of Public Safety(DPS) for inclusion in the annual
Crime in Texas (CIT) publication.To be considered eligible for funding, applicants must have submitted a full twelve months
of accurate data to DPS for the most recent calendar year by the deadline(s) established by DPS. Due to the importance of
timely reporting, applicants are required to submit complete and accurate UCR data, as well as the Texas-mandated
reporting, on a no less than monthly basis and respond promptly to requests from DPS related to the data submitted.
4. Local units of government, including cities, counties and other general purpose political subdivisions,as appropriate, and
institutions of higher education that operate a law enforcement agency, must comply with all aspects of the programs and
procedures utilized by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security("DHS")to:(1) notify DHS of all information requested by
DHS related to illegal aliens in Agency's custody;and (2) detain such illegal aliens in accordance with requests by DHS.
Additionally, counties and municipalities may NOT have in effect, purport to have in effect, or make themselves subject to or
bound by, any law, rule, policy, or practice(written or unwritten)that would: (1) require or authorize the public disclosure of
federal law enforcement information in order to conceal, harbor, or shield from detection fugitives from justice or aliens
illegally in the United States; or(2) impede federal officers from exercising authority under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), § 1226(c), §
1231(a), § 1357(a), § 1366(1), or§ 1366(3). Lastly, eligible applicants must comply with all provisions, policies, and penalties
found in Chapter 752, Subchapter C of the Texas Government Code.
Each local unit of government, and institution of higher education that operates a law enforcement agency, must download,
complete and then upload into eGrants the CEO/Law Enforcement Certifications and Assurances Form certifying compliance
with federal and state immigration enforcement requirements.This Form is required for each application submitted to OOG
and is active until August 31, 2026 or the end of the grant period, whichever is later.
5. In accordance with Texas Government Code, Section 420.034, any facility or entity that collects evidence for sexual assault
or other sex offenses or investigates or prosecutes a sexual assault or other sex offense for which evidence has been
collected, must participate in the statewide electronic tracking system developed and implemented by the Texas Department
of Public Safety.Visit DPS's Sexual Assault Evidence Tracking Program website for more information or to set up an account
to begin participating.Additionally, per Section 420.042 "A law enforcement agency that receives evidence of a sexual
assault or other sex offense...shall submit that evidence to a public accredited crime laboratory for analysis no later than the
30th day after the date on which that evidence was received."A law enforcement agency in possession of a significant
number of Sexual Assault Evidence Kits (SAEK)where the 30-day window has passed may be considered noncompliant.
6. Eligible applicants must be registered in the federal System for Award Management(SAM) database and have an UEI
(Unique Entity ID) number assigned to its agency(to get registered in the SAM database and request an UEI number, go to
https://sam.gov/).
Failure to comply with program or eligibility requirements may cause funds to be withheld and/or the suspension or
termination of grant funds.
Selection Process
Application Screening:The Office of the Governor will screen all applications to ensure that they meet the requirements
included in the funding announcement.
Peer/Merit Review:The Office of the Governor will review applications to understand the overall demand for the program
and for significant variations in costs per item.After this review,the Office of the Governor will determine if all eligible
applications can be funded based on funds available, if there are cost-effectiveness benefits to normalizing or setting limits
on the range of costs, and if other fair share cuts may allow for broader distribution and a higher number of projects while
still remaining effective.
Final Decisions:The Office of the Governor will make all final funding decisions based on eligibility, reasonableness,
availability of funding, geographic distribution, cost effectiveness,or other relevant factors.
The Office of the Governor may not fund all applications or may only award part of the amount requested. In the event that
funding requests exceed available funds, the Office of the Governor may revise projects to address a more limited focus.
Contact Information
For more information, contact the eGrants help desk at eGrants@gov.texas.gov or(512)463-1919.
Total Funds
$TBD