Law enforcement could soon benefit from a bipartisan bill securing federal funds for the care of officers’ children, if the legislation passes.
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), who’s one of the bill’s co-sponsors, says the amount of money set aside is low so far, but she hopes it can be expanded after proving successful.
The bill would secure $24 million each of the next five years for departments across the country, including up to $3 million for any single department.
“New York tends to do well in grant programs, because we apply for the money, we tend to have a great deal of need, so I think we'll compete for it," Gillibrand said. "And this might also spur more bipartisan support for more resources in the future, and it also might spur more state help.”
Under the bill, 20% of total funds are guaranteed toward departments with 100 or fewer officers.
Attica Police Chief Deane Hendershott says the proposal sounds positive, especially since it would increase chances of retaining or hiring officers who have children.
“It'd be an incredible resource and a recruitment tool to use, and possibly even a retention for officers where they don't want to go work for a big, big department they like the small, rural departments," he said. "There's always that, are we going to burden my family with, 'Hey, can you watch Junior this day?' ”
But Hendershott is also remaining cautious because the bill still needs to pass. And certain requirements could make it more difficult for small departments like Attica to secure funds, he said.
"It's been my experience when you apply for federal funding, it's a nightmare, the red tape that you have to go through in order to even apply for the funding, let alone trying to get the funding," he said. "Especially for a smaller department where we don't have the financial means or the opportunity to have a designated grant writer."
