Weekly Update & AnalysisThe Brooks
Bawden Moore Weekly Update and Analysis highlights recent and planned congressional activities including hearings, floor action, and new bill introductions that relate to public safety, justice, and homeland security matters. Please let us know if you would like to know more about any of the items described in the update. Additionally, please feel free to distribute this product as you see fit.
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Week in Recap This week, both chambers of Congress were in recess. However, the House and Senate are set to reconvene on Monday for a two-week period dominated by discussions on national security. The
immediate priority will be addressing the pending expiration (April 19) of surveillance activities authorized by Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Negotiations are expected to take place regarding compromise legislation between the House Judiciary and Intelligence Committees aimed at reforming and reauthorizing the program. A significant point of contention will revolve around whether a warrant should be mandated for querying communications between Americans and
foreigners. Furthermore, attention will be directed towards certain members of the House who are advocating for restrictions on law enforcement's access to commercially available information as part of the FISA reauthorization process. Speaker Johnson has signaled his intention to introduce a foreign assistance supplemental bill to the House floor. This bill aims to provide vital aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan and possibly additional support to domestic nonprofits and religious institutions to enhance their security measures against potential acts of terrorism. In addition, Speaker Johnson plans to present articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the Senate on Wednesday, prompting the Senate to prepare for trial proceedings. Looking ahead, both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees will begin Fiscal Year 2025 budget hearings next week. Meanwhile, the Senate Judiciary Committee will conduct an oversight hearing for the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) at the Department of Justice. In other news, The Department of Justice Released the Third Volume of the National Firearms Commerce and Trafficking Assessment, and The National Institute of Justice published a new article that explores the findings of multiple funded projects that studied individuals who engage in violent extremism and terrorism. |
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interest to the public safety community. Email a member of the BBM team today to get new content delivered directly to your inbox. Blog Posts of the Week |
COPS Funding Opportunities 2024 Open Solicitations New OJP Funding Opportunities Bureau of Justice
Assistance - Deadline Grants.gov 4/10/2024 and JustGrants 4/15/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/25/2024 and JustGrants 4/30/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/25/2024 and JustGrants 5/2/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/29/2024 and JustGrants 5/6/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/1/2024 and JustGrants 5/6/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/2/2024 and JustGrants 5/9/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/6/2024 and JustGrants 5/13/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/9/2024 and JustGrants 5/14/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/9/2024 and JustGrants 5/14/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/15/2024 and JustGrants 5/22/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/22/2024 and JustGrants 6/3/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/28/2024 and JustGrants 6/4/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 6/4/2024 and JustGrants 6/11/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 6/13/2024 and JustGrants 6/20/2024
Bureau of
Justice Statistics - Deadline Grants.gov 5/13/2024 and JustGrants 5/20/2024
- Deadline
Grants.gov 5/6/2024 and JustGrants 5/13/2024
National Institute of Justice - Deadline Grants.gov 3/22/2024 and JustGrants 4/5/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/7/2024 and JustGrants 4/14/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/1/2024 and JustGrants 4/15/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/10/2024 and JustGrants 4/17/2024
- Deadline
Grants.gov 4/10/2024 and JustGrants 4/17/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/11/2024 and
JustGrants 4/18/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/15/2024 and JustGrants 4/22/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/24/2024 and JustGrants 5/1/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/17/2024 and JustGrants 5/1/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/20/2024 and JustGrants 5/3/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/29/2024 and JustGrants 5/6/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/30/2024 and JustGrants 5/7/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/1/2024 and JustGrants 5/15/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/2/2024 and JustGrants 5/16/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/7/2024 and JustGrants 5/21/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/8/2024 and JustGrants 5/22/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/14/2024 and JustGrants 5/28/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/16/2024 and JustGrants 5/30/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/21/2024 and JustGrants 6/04/2024
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention - Deadline Grants.gov 4/15/2024 and JustGrants 5/6/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/15/2024 and JustGrants 5/6/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/15/2024 and JustGrants 5/6/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/29/2024 and JustGrants 5/13/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/30/2024 and JustGrants 5/14/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/30/2024 and JustGrants 5/14/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/6/2024 and JustGrants 5/20/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/14/2024 and JustGrants 5/28/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/14/2024 and JustGrants 5/28/2024
Office for Victims of Crime - Deadline Grants.gov 4/8/2024 and JustGrants 4/22/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/24/2024 and JustGrants 5/06/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 4/24/2024 and JustGrants 5/08/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/6/2024 and JustGrants 5/20/2024
- Deadline Grants.gov 5/21/2024 and
JustGrants 5/28/2024
Hearings This Week- Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security of the Committee on Homeland
Security
Hearings Next Week - US Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control
- House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
- Department of Homeland Security Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee
- Senate Judiciary Committee
- Legislative Branch Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee
- Water and Power Subcommittee of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- Department of Homeland Security Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee
- Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the
House Appropriations Committee
Senate - Senate was not
in session.
House - House was not in session.
New Bill Introductions- No bills of interest were introduced this week.
Community and Client News
Attorney General Merrick
Garland Announces Three New Cities Added to its Criminal Division Violent Crime Initiative Attorney General Merrick B.
Garland announced that the Justice Department is adding three new cities to its Criminal Division’s Violent Crime Initiative (VCI), building on the successful model launched in Houston, Texas, in September 2022, and expanded to Memphis, Tennessee, in November 2023. The VCI surges law enforcement tools and resources to target gangs and other violent groups that are threatening the safety and security of communities in cities across the nation. To focus the Justice Department’s resources on communities most in need, the Criminal Division has identified St. Louis, Missouri; Jackson, Mississippi; and
Hartford, Connecticut, as the next VCI cities. The VCI utilizes prosecutors from the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section—the nation’s foremost experts in racketeering prosecutions—to work alongside prosecutors from the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, as well as dedicated investigative agents, analysts, and forensic experts from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and other federal, state, and local law
enforcement agencies. Through the VCI, the Criminal Division also works with community leaders in each city to best understand citizens’ concerns and to work to support them. Since the start of Houston VCI, Houston saw reductions of 9% in violent crime and 20% in homicides. In Memphis, when compared to 2023, official counts of murders, robberies, and aggravated assaults have decreased since the VCI has been operational.
DHS Office
for State and Local Law Enforcement Upcoming Webinar : Artificial Intelligence The DHS Office for
State and Local Law Enforcement (OSLLE) is pleased to announce the next webinar in the OSLLE webinar series, will be on Thursday, April 11, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. ET. on the topic of Artificial Intelligence, including an overview of the uses and threat landscape as it relates to the law enforcement community. They will have briefings from the Department of Homeland Security and the New York City Police Department (NYPD). Please see the attached invitation for more information. You may also Click Here to register. Zoom login instructions will be sent directly to attendees once they have RSVP’d to the webinar. Please feel free to share this webinar invitation broadly with your members and law enforcement colleagues. The intended audience of this event is law enforcement officials and those who support law enforcement officials. The event is closed to the press.
New
Webinar Available: Internet of Things Training and Technical Assistance Program This webinar will provide details
for potential applicants to the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) FY24 Internet of Things National Training and Technical Assistance Program solicitation. The presenter will discuss the purpose and goals of this funding opportunity, review eligibility requirements, and address frequently asked questions. A Q&A session will conclude this webinar. With this solicitation, BJA seeks to provide training and technical assistance to state, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement officials; intelligence analysts; prosecutors; judges; fusion center staff; and other criminal justice entities who prevent, investigate, and respond to crimes
that use wireless devices. Internet of Things
Training and Technical Assistance Program Wednesday, April 10, 2024, at 1 p.m. ET Presenter: David Lewis, Senior Policy Advisor, BJA
The Bureau
of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Releases Volume III of the National Firearms Commerce and Trafficking Assessment (NFCTA) The National Firearms Commerce and Trafficking Assessment is a comprehensive report on firearms commerce and trafficking. This volume presents and analyzes data on ATF firearm trafficking investigations initiated between 2017 and 2021. For purposes of this study, ATF firearm trafficking investigations were defined as cases that involved “the movement of one or more firearms into the illegal market for a criminal purpose.
Recording and Additional
Resources from the K-12 School Safety Funding Opportunities Virtual Training On March 26th, The Federal School Safety
Clearinghouse held a virtual training on K-12 School Safety Funding Opportunities. Below, please find information highlighted and provided from the training. Presentation Recording and Slides The presentation slides and a recording of the virtual training are now available on SchoolSafety.gov. Additional Resources To learn more about some of the grant programs covered during the training, please use the
following links: U.S. Department of Education U.S. Department of Health and Human Services U.S. Department of Justice SchoolSafety.gov’s Grants Finder Tool also houses these and other federal school safety funding opportunities available to the K-12 community in one centralized location. Please feel free to explore this tool and share with others in your school community.
Opinion: Thousands of retired
officers are willing to assist beleaguered police forces By Art Gordon Art Gordon is a retired supervisory special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with 33 years of law enforcement
experience. He is past national president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association. He now serves on the Law Enforcement Advisory Council of Citizens Behind the Badge. As a 33-year federal law enforcement veteran, a former national president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association and the owner of a security consulting firm, I am deeply concerned about the public safety and national security crisis facing our nation. The causes are obvious. Because of historic increases in officer retirements and resignations over the past few years caused by the “defund and defame” police movement, our nation has fewer police officers per resident than at any time in more than 25 years. Police
agencies are desperate to hire — cash incentives are being offered, and qualifying standards are being lowered — but few want the job given the incessant bashing of law enforcement. In 2004, Congress passed the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act, which authorizes retired law enforcement officers to carry guns anywhere in the U.S. if they are honorably retired and meet their annual firearms qualification requirement. This law was passed at a time when a similar state of concern about terrorism and crime existed. It was a thoughtful response to a serious concern. A bill pending in Congress, the LEOSA Reform Act, would fine-tune that law. This legislation is necessary because some states or
jurisdictions do not honor the statute’s intent. It would clarify that the right to carry guns for retired law enforcement officers is the law of the land and should be respected by all jurisdictions. This is a no-cost bill that appears to have bipartisan support, yet it has languished in Congress for
years and seemingly is still not a priority. This makes no sense. The LEOSA Reform Act needs to be passed this year. And we need to go even further. Not only should retired law enforcement professionals be allowed to carry guns anywhere in the U.S., but we also need to establish a LEOSA Reserve Force that is trained, organized, and ready to assist active policing personnel should the need arise. It would function much like the National Guard, which is called upon to assist when public safety or military needs require it. Thousands of law enforcement retirees like myself, who are highly trained and are authorized to carry guns, are willing and able to support current active law enforcement
officers across the U.S. through a LEOSA Reserve Force. These highly trained police officers and federal agents have spent a lifetime serving as law enforcement officers. There is no reason why this vital resource should not be used, and it could be done with relative ease. The U.S. Marshals Service, with the authorization of the attorney general, could deputize these LEOSA-qualified officers as deputy U.S. marshals with the stroke of a pen.
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It’s Hard to Implement Red Flag Laws. A New National Center Is Meant to Make It Easier.
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On March 23, Vice President Kamala Harris visited Parkland, and — surrounded by families who lost loved ones in the shooting — publicly launched the National ERPO Resource Center, a partnership between the federal government and Johns Hopkins University to
help increase the effectiveness of these laws. Meanwhile, she reminded the 21 states that already have ERPO laws of a pertinent fact: Hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding is on the table to increase their use.
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Oregon governor signs a bill recriminalizing drug possession into law
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Oregon’s Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek on Monday signed into law a bill that recriminalizes the possession of small amounts of drugs, ending a first-in-the-nation experiment with decriminalization that was hobbled by implementation issues.
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Elaborate scheme used drones to drop drugs in prisons, authorities in Georgia say
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Officials arrested 150 people in Georgia and charged them in an elaborate drug- and contraband-smuggling scheme that involved using drones to deliver illicit drugs to prisons, officials said this week.
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NYC will try gun scanners in subway system in effort to deter violence underground
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New York City officials announced a pilot program on Thursday to deploy portable gun scanners in the subway system, part of an effort to deter violence underground and to make the system feel safer.
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Fentanyl kills thousands of Americans. Could plugging a gap in U.S. intelligence save lives?
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As the nation's primary spy outfit, the Central Intelligence Agency in particular says the intelligence collection allowed under Section 702 is urgently needed to thwart transnational organized crime groups manufacturing and smuggling the lethally potent
synthetic opioid from China to Mexico and into the U.S.
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911, can I have access to the camera on your phone?
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The 911 system has been around since the late 1960s, before which callers relied on operators to reach emergency personnel. As time passed, emergency dispatch grew into its own specialty. By 1982 CAD (computer-aided dispatch) systems were helping dispatchers
track and keep records of calls. So, what can we expect for the emergency dispatch system’s continued development? Its next evolution will be the ability to connect via FaceTime and similar social media live video feeds. Callers will soon be able to inform dispatch centers by giving dispatchers access to their cell phones, thus letting them see emergencies in real time.
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The White House Announces New AI Rules To Protect Public
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Vice President, Kamala Harris, told reporters Thursday that the US federal agencies must show that their artificial intelligence tools aren’t harming the public, or stop using them, per a new policy unveiled by the White House.
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Washington state judge blocks use of AI-enhanced video as evidence in possible first-of-its-kind ruling
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A Washington state judge overseeing a triple murder case barred the use of video enhanced by artificial intelligence as evidence in a ruling that experts said may be the first-of-its-kind in a United States criminal court.
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Justice Department announces nearly $80 million to help communities fight violent crime
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The Justice Department is set to invest nearly $80 million in additional funding to support community violence intervention programs across the country as part of the federal government's multifaceted strategy to continue stemming what had been rising crime
rates, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Wednesday.
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Timeline for menthol ban slips again
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The White House’s timeline for banning menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars appears to have slipped again after the administration missed its self-imposed target to finalize the rules by March. Questions of political fallout from the bans — menthol
cigarettes in particular — have swirled since the Food and Drug Administration proposed the rules in April 2022. The administration already delayed the timeline once before, from August to March.
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Florida to introduce dementia training to law enforcement after signing of new bill
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A newly signed law establishes formal training for law enforcement in Florida to learn how to interact with people who have memory care issues.The online course, which is expected to become available in October, will teach techniques for effective
communication, recognizing behavioral symptoms and characteristics, and using alternatives to physical restraint when encountering a person suffering from Alzheimer’s or dementia.
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2024 IJIS Community Forum Nashville, TN — Apr. 2.- Apr. 4 ,2024 | | |
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National Police Week Washington, DC — May 11.- Mar. 16 ,2024 | | |
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National Association of Police Organizations TOP COPS Award Dinner/Legislative Update Washington, DC — May 12.- Mar. 14 ,2024 | | |
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2024 IACP Technology Conference Charlotte, NC — May 21.- May 23 ,2024 | | |
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Small & Rural Law Enforcement Executives’ Association Annual Conference Petersburg, VA — July 29.- July 31 ,2024 | | |
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American Correctional Association's 154th Congress of Correction Nashville, TN — Aug 15.- Aug 18 ,2024 | | |
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