Shapiro-Davis Administration Is Delivering on Its Commitment to Safer Communities in Lehigh Valley and Across the Commonwealth, Helping Local Communities Hire More Police Officers
December 20, 2023
Allentown Receives $200K, Bethlehem Receives $75K for Law Enforcement Recruitment, Hiring and Training From Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency
Bethlehem, PA – The Shapiro-Davis Administration is delivering on its commitment to ensuring police departments are well-staffed and well-funded, with Lt. Gov. Austin Davis visiting the Lehigh Valley today to highlight more than $1 million in grants going to local agencies, including $75,000 for Bethlehem and $200,000 for Allentown, to support law enforcement recruitment and address staffing shortages.
“Every Pennsylvanian — whether they live in a city like Allentown or Bethlehem, or they live and study on a college campus or they take public transit to their job — everyone should have the freedom to be safe and feel safe in their community,” said Davis, who also leads the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), which awarded the grants. “A total of 20 local agencies, from Millcreek Township in Erie County, to Allentown and Bethlehem in the Lehigh Valley, to SEPTA, are receiving grants to help train and fill a total of 225 vacant law enforcement positions across the Commonwealth. These new officers are part of the Shapiro-Davis Administration’s commitment to ensuring safer communities for all Pennsylvanians.”
Last week members of the PCCD voted to approve more than $1 million in grants for 20 law enforcement agencies in the first round of selected applications under Recruitment Incentives for Law Enforcement. There is a total of $14 million available to support local law enforcement recruitment and address staffing shortages.
“It is absolutely critical that we as a Commonwealth provide local law enforcement with the personnel and tools necessary to serve our citizens and keep our communities safe,” said state Sen. Lisa Boscola. “This $75,000 grant to the city of Bethlehem will make the city safer as it aids them in being able to fill a current shortfall in officers and expected vacancies that will soon occur. Police officers are a tremendous asset to our communities. Their dedication to serving and protecting our communities is admirable and appreciated — they need to know we have their backs and will continue to fund their training and equipment needs after they join a police force.”
Local law enforcement agencies, campus or university police, railroad or street railway police, airport authority police and county park police remain eligible to apply for this solicitation as it will remain open until the allocated $14 million in funding is committed. Priority consideration in awards will go to law enforcement agencies serving areas with high rates of violent crime and who have low clearance rates for violent crimes.
Applicants can find more information on funding requirements and how to apply on PCCD’s active funding announcements webpage.
