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62.

Meeting Date:	09/28/2015
FY 2015 JAG Award
Submitted for:	Martin Cuellar	Submitted By:	Anita Guerra
Department:	Sheriff

Subject:

Discussion and possible action to enter and accept a grant award in the amount of $39,664.50 (BJA Grant No. 2015-DJ-BX-0581) from the Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) in response to a joint application submitted with the City of Laredo for assorted technology needs and the continued partial payment of salary and fringe benefits of a deputy/peace officer to provide enhanced border security for the Laredo/Webb County area and authorizing the Webb County Judge to execute all relevant documents; and any other matters incident thereto. This grant does not require any match.

Issue:   Supplemental computer equipment and supplies will allow the Webb County Sheriff’s Office to improve operational capacity in order to provide better and more enhanced law enforcement services to the Laredo/Webb County community. The County of Webb/City of Laredo continues to constitute an important part of the federally designated South Texas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), which is one of the most strategically significant cross-border drug smuggling corridors in the entire United States.

Solution:   Grant award to provide supplemental computer equipment and supplies for the Webb County Sheriff’s Office as well as the leveraging of federal grant JAG funds in order to cover the anticipated shortfall of a state funding for the currently deployed grant funded officer.

Result:       The Webb County Sheriff’s Office and its staff will be equipped with needed new, updated technology, equipment, and supplies. The certified peace officer currently funded by a state grant will be able to be deployed on a full time basis through the leveraging of Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) funds.

Background:

This grant will fund technology, including computer hardware/software, needs at the Webb County Sheriff’s Office as well as the partial salary and fringe benefits of a deputy (certified peace officer) who works in the Patrol Division to provide enhanced patrolling for border security in the Laredo/Webb County area. This Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) is considered a disparate allocation, which occurs when a city or municipality is allocated one-and-one-half times (150 percent) more than the county, while the county bears more than 50% of the cost associated with the incarceration of the municipality’s Part I violent crimes.

Previous Court Action:

The submission of the grant application was approved at the court meeting held on June 22, 2015.

Fiscal Impact

Budget Account Number:	To Be Determined
Funding Source:	Grant
Balance:	Not Applicable
Financial Impact:
$47,716.36 grant funding for the Webb County Sheriff's Office.

Attachments
2015 JAG Award