JAG Recovery

This grant program is authorized by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5) (the 'Recovery Act') and by 42 U.S.C. 3751(a). The stated purposes of the Recovery Act are: to preserve and create jobs and promote economic recovery; to assist those most impacted by the recession; to provide investments needed to increase economic efficiency by spurring technological advances in science and health; to invest in transportation, environmental protection, and other infrastructure that will provide long-term economic benefits; and to stabilize state and local government budgets, in order to minimize and avoid reductions in essential services and counterproductive state and local tax increases. The Recovery Act places great emphasis on accountability and transparency in the use of taxpayer dollars.

Among other things, it creates a new Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board and a new website ' Recovery.gov ' to provide information to the public, including access to detailed information on grants and contracts made with Recovery Act funds.

The Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program funded under the Recovery Act is the primary provider of federal criminal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions. Recovery JAG funds support all components of the criminal justice system, from multi-jurisdictional drug and gang task forces to crime prevention and domestic violence programs, courts, corrections, treatment, and justice information sharing initiatives. Recovery JAG funded projects may address crime through the provision of services directly to individuals and/or communities and by improving the effectiveness and efficiency of criminal justice systems, processes, and procedures.

The city of Spokane, serving as the fiscal agent for this award, will share the Fiscal Year 2009 Recovery Act JAG award with Spokane County and the cities of Spokane Valley, Airway Heights, and Cheney. In a disparate situation, the units of local government must apply for an award with a single, joint application. Each jurisdiction's allocation will be used for activities and projects that will provide meaningful and measurable outcomes consistent with the goals of the Recovery Act to include criminal justice system improvements, crime prevention, criminal justice personnel trainings, and justice information sharing enhancement programs. Grant funds will be used to: purchase an encryption server for secure data transfer, a forensic computer, personnel staffing software, mobile laptop computers for use in the field, patrol bicycles, office laptop computer upgrades, ammunition to be used for targeting practice, in-field computers, car radios, portable radios, patrol vehicle light bars, scanners for in-field citations, night vision cameras for patrol vehicles, and a recidivism tracking database; hire a criminal history specialist and a paint over graffiti coordinator; renovate and install a targeting system at the outdoor tactical shooting range at the Spokane Regional Training Center; and support a neighborhood watch program.

NCA/NCF