News Release Date
11-03-2023
The City of Hutchins to receive $ 500,000 federal COPS grant to hire four additional police officers.
| On Monday, April 3, 2023, Hutchins Police Department staff met with the Mayor and City Council to discuss grant opportunities to hire additional Police Officers. The City Council, in support of public safety, authorized staff to request grant funding through the United States Department of Justice Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office). |
| Subsequently, through a very rigorous application process, staff members prepared the grant application requesting funding through the Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services. Governmental entities approved for funding under this grant opportunity must agree to contribute twenty-five percent of the funding over a three-year period and agree to continued employment of the approved positions after the grant cost sharing period is over. |
| On Thursday, November 2, 2023, the City of Hutchins received notice through the COPS office that the requested grant award had been approved awarding the city $ 500,000 to hire four (4) additional police officers. The City of Hutchins is among one of the thirty-three agencies in Texas to receive funding and the only agency in Dallas County to receive COPS grant funding. The COPS grant funded 1,730 additional Police Officer positions across the United States for a total amount of $ 216,809,571. |
| In a statement released by Police Chief Steve Perry, he reports that the City of Hutchins is proud to notify the citizens of Hutchins, that through support from the Hutchins City Council and support through the Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services, the city of Hutchins COPS grant application has been approved awarding federal funds to hire four (4) additional police officers in the City of Hutchins. According to Police Chief Steve Perry, receiving these funds will increase minimum staffing levels in the city’s police department patrol and criminal investigations divisions. Additionally, Chief Perry reports that the City of Hutchins has had an increase in calls for service and motor vehicle accidents every year for the past five years because of the growth in the Southern Dallas County region. |
| Chief Perry reported that the residential population is expected to double over the next five years and these positions will help minimum staffing levels and increase officer presence throughout the city. The mission of the Hutchins Police Department is to effectively and efficiently provide for the protection of lives and property, preserve the public peace, and provide needed community services with the highest level of professionalism and ethical standards. According to Chief Perry, receiving this grant further promotes the mission of the Hutchins Police Department to keep the community safe. |