Dutchess County Awarded Nearly $250,000 for Police Protective Equipment

Poughkeepsie…Dutchess County was recently awarded $249,930 from the NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services’ (DCJS) Police Protective Equipment Program.  The grant program provides local police agencies funding for protective equipment including advanced ballistic helmets and vests and DCJS approved patrol rifles “to provide the greatest level of protection and effectiveness in order to combat active shooter incidents, terrorist attacks, and/or other criminal events,” according to the DCJS grant application. As part of Dutchess County’s continuing efforts to engage in shared services initiatives, the Dutchess County Executive’s Office took the lead in submitting the application on behalf of eight police agencies including the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office and City of Poughkeepsie, Town of East Fishkill, Town of Fishkill, Town of Hyde Park, Town of Poughkeepsie, Village of Fishkill and Village of Rhinebeck police departments.

“We continue advancing our shared services efforts and with this grant, we provide our law enforcement officers with the protection and resources they need to keep them safe. Our office worked quickly to compile the information necessary for this grant application and ensure Dutchess County would be a recipient of these critical funds. This is just another example of how we bring together community leaders to share services and lower the burden on taxpayers,” said Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro.

Police agencies were assessed and selected for funding based on the equipment needs of their department. The grant funding breakdown by agency is as follows:

“I thank County Executive Molinaro for working to secure this grant funding which will enhance the safety of our officers,” said Dutchess County Sheriff Adrian “Butch” Anderson. “This funding will allow us to continue with our efforts to provide training and equipment needed during a possible catastrophic event in order to protect our brave men and women in uniform and our residents.”

Approximately $10,000,000 in grant funding was made available for award through the program for all counties in New York State based on county population and designated funding tier. Each local police agency will receive funding directly from the DCJS Office of Program Development and Funding Program for the contract period of January 1st to December 31st, 2017. To learn more about the programs and services provided by the NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services, go to: http://www.criminaljustice.ny.gov/