Stimulus Dollars for Public Safety

Today, Miami Chief of Police John F. Timoney and I had the honor of welcoming Vice President Joe Biden and Laurie Robinson, Acting Assistant Attorney General/Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, to our Miami Police Headquarters. During their visit, we toured the construction site for the City of Miami College of Policing and Miami-Dade County Public Schools Senior High School for Law Studies, Homeland Security and Forensic Sciences.
We also held a joined press conference today at Miami Police Headquarters to discuss the $4 billion for state and local law enforcement and other criminal and juvenile justice activities included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. We discussed funding in the Recovery Act specifically for Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program funds – which will help keep police officers on the street, protecting our communities and our families.
As a senator, as a Vice Presidential candidate, and now as Vice President, Joe Biden has stood with America's mayors and America's cities on public safety: police, fire and emergency services, and federal law enforcement.
Vice President Biden joins America’s mayors in recognizing that assuring our public safety requires an active partnership between cities and the federal government. He joined our call to revive the cops program and the Byrne/JAG grants.
He joined our call to renew the federal ban on military assault weapons that are killing children on the streets of Miami and cities around the country on an unprecedented scale, and he joined our call to put an end to the gun show loophole.
True to his word, the COPS Program and Byrne/JAG grants are included in the economic recovery act and are part of the president’s proposed 2010 budget.
This couldn’t come at a more crucial time.
Declining municipal budgets have forced many cities to reduce their police force at a time when public safety is more important than ever.
Government’s most important role is to make our streets and neighborhoods safe for our children and our families.
With the help of our government in Washington, we will achieve our goal of making our streets safer.

- Manny