Rep. Maloney Fights to Preserve COPS Program

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan, Queens) joined with Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), fellow House colleagues, and representatives of law enforcement organizations at a Capitol Hill press conference organized by Pascrell to oppose the proposed elimination of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Office.
The proposed elimination of the COPS Office is included in the FY2012 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, which is scheduled for a vote in the House Committee on Appropriations tomorrow.  The COPS Office’s programs include the COPS Hiring Program, which provided $240 million in federal aid this year to help communities keep police officers on the job.

“House Republicans have been pursuing a job-killing agenda for months, but it’s appalling that the jobs they’re going after now are those of police officers protecting communities across the nation,” Maloney said.  “All jobs are important, but it’s especially important to protect those held by cops and firefighters from the budget axe.  I urge my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee to reject this wrongheaded cut, and I thank my colleague Bill Pascrell for his leadership on this vital issue.”