Miami Police Getting Stimulus Bucks

[JAVI ORTIZ]

Miami Police Getting Big Stimulus Bucks
White House Awards $11 Million In Grants To City Of Miami Police

POSTED: Tuesday, July 28, 2009
UPDATED: 3:34 pm EDT July 28, 2009



MIAMI -- The City of Miami police department is getting more than $11 million in stimulus money, the White House announced on Tuesday.

The money will pay for 50 new officers for the city for three years, including salaries and benefits.

The money for Miami Police is just part of $1 billion in grants to fund the hiring and rehiring of law enforcement officers all across the country under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

That includes more than $87 million in grants to fund the hiring and rehiring of 428 law enforcement officers in Florida.

Cities of Hollywood, Miramar, North Bay Village, Miami Springs, Miami Shores, North Miami, Boynton Beach, West Palm Beach, Opa-locka, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach will also be getting large grants.

[JAVI ORTIZ]

CBS4.com

The City of Miami Police Department will receive an $11 million federal grant as part of President Obama's stimulus plan package. Other South Florida cities will also receive grant money.

There are have's and have-not's in South Florida law enforcement this week. Federal stimulus money aimed at keeping or putting officers on the streets left the Miami Police Department with the biggest windfall. The department found out it will receive $11 million in stimulus money over the next three years. That could allow for the hiring of between 50 to 100 patrol officers, depending on the estimates being used.

Miami police chief John Timoney said, "In hard economic times this is a gift from heaven." That's especially true as city and county budget writers everywhere look at the possibility of job freezes or layoffs.

Timoney is trying to figure out the city's good fortune. With some 1,100 people in uniform the department's staffing is already at historic highs. Officials also argue that crime trends in the city would not have signaled any outsized need for the huge windfall.

It didn't hurt, perhaps, that the Miami police chief is well acquainted with Vice President Joe Biden, a relationship going back to Timoney's days in Philadelphia and New York. Timoney would only say, "It's like chicken soup. It can't hurt."

Tuesday's announcement confirmed that more than $17 million of that federal grant money is coming to South Florida police agencies, but Miami's department is getting more than any other city in the state of Florida.

Other South Florida police agencies receiving money include: Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Miami Gardens, Florida City, Hallandale Beach, Miami Shores, Miami Springs, Miramar, North Bay Village, North Miami Beach, North Miami, Opa-Locka, The Seminole Tribe, Key West Police Department and the Monroe County Sheriff's Department.

Click here to see the complete list of recipients and also how money money each department will receive.

Fort Lauderdale will able to put 12 officers on the road with more than three million dollars in stimulus money.

The aid announced by Vice President Joe Biden and Attorney General Eric Holder is just a fraction of what police departments across the country had hoped to get. The Obama Administration allocated $1 billion dollars for law enforcement but had $7 billion worth of requests under the grant program, Community Oriented Policing Services, commonly called COPS.

On the other hand, the Broward Sheriff's Office did not receive any funding from the COPS grant program. Broward Sheriff Al Lamberti issued this statement Tuesday afternoon:

"While I am disappointed that we were not included in this first round of funding approvals, I remain optimistic. We received the official notice this afternoon and are in the process evaluating our current options."
The Miami-Dade Police department is also wondering how funding formulas were written. A request for $11 million in stimulus money was rejected.

Four other major U.S. cities also didn't receive any of the funding. New York, Houston, Seattle and Pittsburgh are among those that will not get money because the Justice Department decided other parts of the country simply needed it more, officials said.

Attorney General Eric Holder says the money will add officers to communities "where they are needed most," based on crime rates and financial need and other factors.

About 7,000 state and local agencies applied for aid under the COPS program that is part of the $787 billion stimulus package passed earlier this year. Of those, only about 1,000 were approved. Each state is entitled to at least $5 million in COPS money.

Officials familiar with Tuesday's announcement said the Justice Department estimates the grant awards will help hire 3,818 new officers, and retain 881 positions that would otherwise be lost to budgetary belt-tightening.

That makes a total of 4,699 officers -- still short of the program's announced goal of hiring 5,000 officers.

Under the COPS program, the federal government pays the officers' salary and benefits for three years, after which the local government is responsible for the costs.

Hey Javi and FOP,we can thank Chief John F Timoney for this money. It was him and he only who got it. When a man has the influence to bring the Vice President of the USA to Miami,he has power.
Face it,we f@&%ed up trying to oust the old man. He shouldn't do crap for us now!

when does the FDL-ube report come out?!

it didn't hurt, perhaps, that the Miami police chief is well acquainted with Vice President Joe Biden, a relationship going back to Timoney's days in Philadelphia and New York. Timoney would only say, "It's like chicken soup. It can't hurt."


T'Money is going no where in November

As a fellow New Yorker I knew T'Money would not be brought down by Miami politics. I just wish he would make this place a better place to work and change some of the people around him.

THANK GOD. NOW THE COMMANDERS CAN GET MORE BONUSES !!!!

I said once and I will say it again, Timinoney will be staying in Miami Police. Do you think that sorry face Mike Exposito can us stimulus money? The only thing he can get for MPD is headaches and problems. regalado wont have any other coice than to keep him, if he knows what is good for him. The U.S. Justice Department is backing our great chief and wont put up with this little CUBAN refugee want to politico Chief of the Pork and Beans Brigade.

So, I hear that they are going to hire 50 more officers for 3 years. Would that be certified or non-certified officers?

I said once and I will say it again, Timinoney will be staying in Miami Police. Do you think that sorry face Mike Exposito can us stimulus money? The only thing he can get for MPD is headaches and problems. regalado wont have any other coice than to keep him, if he knows what is good for him. The U.S. Justice Department is backing our great chief and wont put up with this little CUBAN refugee want to politico Chief of the Pork and Beans Brigade.

Regalado needs cause to fire the Chief which he doesn't have. Regalado is using the sorry behind of Exposito to get the support of the FOP. Reminds me of Angel Gonzalez who did the same. Exposito in not qualify to be a Major how is he going to become a Chief.

QUE VIVA JOHN TIMONEY

CUBANOS FOR THE IRISH!!!! :lol:

We should hire as much certified as possible, so we can save money. That way we save money in academy, and pay. :cop: