Governor Tom Wolf announced today the availability of $185 million in state funding for two new programs that improve community safety by ensuring adequate resources for local law enforcement and county district attorneys’ offices.

“With adequate resources, our local law enforcement and investigative offices can better protect and serve our communities,” said Gov. Wolf. “This is $185 million to ensure answered calls for help, remove criminals from our streets, and prosecute violent crimes to the fullest extent possible. It’s a down payment on peace of mind tomorrow and less sorrow and bloodshed in the years to come.”

Gov. Wolf secured $135 million for a Local Law Enforcement Support Program and $50 million for a Gun Violence Investigation & Prosecution Program in his final capstone budget. With no support from Pennsylvania’s Republican-led General Assembly to enact commonsense gun violence prevention laws, Gov. Wolf has worked to prevent violence through community investments and executive action.

The $135 million Local Law Enforcement Program (LLES) provides law enforcement agencies with the necessary resources to implement information technology improvements, purchase or upgrade equipment, cover nontraditional law enforcement personnel costs, support retention and recruitment efforts, and provide necessary training. Priority consideration for these grants will be given to areas of Pennsylvania with high rates of violence or to law enforcement agencies with low clearance rates (i.e., lower ability to solve crimes).

Eligible applicants for the LLES program include local law enforcement agencies, campus police or university police, railroad or street railway police, airport authority police department, and county park police forces. Maximum project amounts are based on the population of the law enforcement agency’s jurisdiction or agency type and range from $500,000 to $25 million to support project activities over a two-year period.

The $50 million Gun Violence Investigation & Prosecution Program (GVIP) provides county district attorneys’ offices and local law enforcement agencies more tools to investigate and prosecute firearm violations and violent crimes committed with firearms. Funding can be spent on improving multi-agency gun violence task forces, personnel costs, technology and software to improve investigation or prosecutions or increase clearance rates, firearm tracing programs, and any other efforts that aid in the investigation, arrest and prosecution of a crime involving firearms.

Similar to the LLES program, maximum project amounts for the GVIP program are based on the population of the law enforcement agency’s jurisdiction or agency type and range from $500,000 to $25 million to support project activities over a two-year period.  Priority consideration for the GVIP grants will be given to areas of Pennsylvania with high rates of gun violence, with at least $5 million reserved for county district attorney’s offices and law enforcement agencies serving rural communities.

“I am confident that safer communities are within reach,” added Gov. Wolf. “We’re cracking down on ghost guns, investing in community-based violence prevention programs, and ready to benefit from President Biden’s Bipartisan Safter Communities Act. With open minds, creativity, and partnerships—we will stave away violence and lift fear from Pennsylvania’s communities.”

Both programs are being administered by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD). The application period for both solicitations will be open from September 1, 2022 to October 13, 2022 in PCCD’s Egrants system, with awards expected to be announced in December 2022.  More information about the solicitations can be found under the Enhancing Law Enforcement webpage and the Open Funding Announcements webpage on the www.pccd.pa.gov website.