National Night Out Tonight and More Recovery and Reinvestment Money for Policing in New Mexico

The good news from our U.S. Senators and Congressmen is that New Mexico communities are receiving $5 million to hire more police but the bad news is due to poor handling of past federal funding in our city we won’t be getting any of that funding.

“Bingaman & Udall: New Mexico Communities Receive $5 Million to Hire Police Officers

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jeff Bingaman and Tom Udall today announced that the federal government is releasing over $5 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grant funding to help New Mexico communities hire law enforcement officers.

The grants are being provided through the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring Recovery Program, and will provide 100 percent of the approved salary and benefits for entry level officer positions over a three year period. Police departments receiving the grants will then be required to retain the grant funded positions for a fourth year.

"Providing for an adequate number of law enforcement officers is key to keeping our state's communities safe. Unfortunately, smaller communities often lack the resources needed to hire enough police officers and sheriff's deputies to address crime," Bingaman said. "This funding will help many New Mexico law enforcement agencies hire or rehire officers and help them meet their policing needs."

"In a struggling economic climate, crime is often on the rise. Adding additional police officers in these areas will help combat crime and allow New Mexicans to feel safe in their homes and communities," said Udall. "This Recovery Act funding is also creating lasting jobs that benefit New Mexico's police force." The following communities and police departments will receive funding”

Community/Department--City of Santa Fe
Amount--$1.48 million
Number of Officers--8

Community/Department--Las Cruces Police Department
Amount--$1.51 million
Number of Officers--8

Community/Department--Farmington Police Department
Amount--$1.06 million
Number of Officers--5

Community/Department--Gallup Police Department
Amount--$490,404
Number of Officers--3

Community/Department--City of Belen
Amount--$186,037
Number of Officers--1

Community/Department--Española Police Department
Amount--$174,631
Number of Officers--1

Community/Department--Mora County Sheriff's Department
Amount--$94,244
Number of Officers--1

Community/Department--Village of Santa Clara
Amount--$63,199
Number of Officers--1

Community/Department--Albuquerque Police Department
Amount--$0
Number of Officers--0

The current mayor has said that he would like to increase the police force by a hundred police officers in order to reduce crime in our city. Albuquerque is a growing city and with it comes some of the problems that develop with such a large population.

One of our more active State Senators, Senator Tim Keller from the International District is encouraging his voters to get out tonight and be active in their communities in order to deter crime and foster closer neighborhood relationships. It has been proven that when a community builds those types of relationships with each other and the police that the rate of crime goes down. The International District and Parkland Hills Neighborhoods are all having activities at their local community centers this evening.