May 12, 1999
Web posted at: 1:40 p.m. EDT (1740 GMT)

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, May 12) -- President Bill Clinton announced Wednesday the funding of the 100,000th new police officer, a long-promised hallmark of his administration, and urged more support for his crime-fighting proposals and seeking new controls on dangerous biological materials.

Clinton presented $95 million in grants for 1,500 officers, which includes the federal funding of the 100,000th new police officer under the community policing component of his 1994 crime bill, at a White House ceremony Wednesday afternoon.

Clinton said the community policing program, known as Community Oriented Policing Services or COPS, has been one of the main factors in reducing the nation's crime rate. The new grants will bring the program to more than 100,000 police officers funded ahead of schedule and under budget, he said.

"In making America's thin blue line thicker and stronger, our nation will be safer," Clinton said.

He also pushed Congress to renew the community policing program for five years and pass his omnibus crime package, especially its initiatives aimed at reducing juvenile violence.

The president also unveiled new legislation to combat terrorism by stiffening penalties for unauthorized possession of harmful biological agents like anthrax and holding certified handlers of such materials accountable for their misuse.

However, congressional Republicans are balking at the idea of renewing the president's program, citing a lack of funds in next year's budget.

"We have a huge funding shortage. ... Funding existing programs is going to be tough enough; new ones are impossible," said Elizabeth Morra, spokeswoman for the House Appropriations Committee.

Morra also said that Clinton's budget would eliminate anti-crime block grants favored by the GOP. Republicans are anxious to see money set aside for a $523 million program that provides aid to local law enforcement agencies and $250 million in block grants for state and local juvenile crime programs, she said.

Clinton has long made the addition of 100,000 new police officers a goal of his administration. The number of officers actually on the street is behind the number funded, but White House officials say the long-sought goal has been met via Wednesday's grants.

Republicans have often hammered the Clinton Administration for failing to fulfill its promise of 100,000 new police officers. A recent Justice Department Inspector General's report also criticized several state and local police agencies for using the grants to replace, rather than supplement, state and local funds.

But administration officials said it takes 18 months for a trainee to hit the streets after an agency receives the funds. The officials estimate that Clinton can say more than 50,000 officers are already on the streets.

Police agencies also can choose to use the funds to upgrade communications and other gear in order to free officers for patrols.

Jose Cerda of the White House domestic policy team said the agencies criticized by the Justice Department were less than one percent of the grant recipients and had been singled out for review because of administration suspicions.

"Every indication from the Justice Department, from surveys that they conduct regularly, is that every six months there are more cops on the street," Cerda said. "The program is working well."

Clinton hopes to extend the community policing program and spend $1.3 billion annually to help local law enforcement continue to hire more police, buy bulletproof vests, improve communications gear, hire more local prosecutors and engage schools and community leaders more closely.

Among the 526 grants announced Wednesday, officials said, were $2.3 million to hire 30 new officers for the Miami-Dade Public Schools police in Florida; $1.5 million to hire 20 new officers in Raleigh, North Carolina.; $1.9 million for 20 new officers in Fairfax, Virginia; and $1.6 million for 21 new officers in Irvington, New Jersey. A half-dozen towns in Puerto Rico were receiving funds for 137 new officers.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Wednesday, May 12, 1999

• Treasury Secretary Rubin resigns
• Larry Summers 'prepared' to step into Rubin's shoes
• A glimpse of Rubin in the White House
• Transcript: Clinton announces Rubin resignation; Summers, Eizenstat nominations
• Transcript: Rubin announces resignation
• Transcript: Summers accepts Treasury secretary nomination
• Transcript: Eizenstat accepts deputy Treasury secretary nomination
• Senate refuses to close 'gun-show loophole'
• McCain on the march
• Burton continues to probe Clinton-Gore campaign finances
• Gingrich blasts administration, media and hollywood on Kosovo and Littleton
• Administration funds 100,000th cop
• Elizabeth Dole opposes concealed weapons law, backs mandatory safety locks
• Senate spotlights nuclear security lapses
• White House Web site back online
• FCC: Make sure emergency cell phone calls go through
• Congressional bargainers approve $11.6 billion for Kosovo, defense
• House GOP sets Social Security vote
• Democrats: Bush too busy for Texas
• Bill ending Internet gambling clears Senate subcommittee
• Bill Bradley says hard work pays off
• Constitutional amendment turns from possible victory to likely defeat
• Welfare to what? States track down those gone from the rolls
• State studies find varying work rates
• Former first lady calls for more Republican women leaders
• Willey says she knows who made alleged threats
• Mrs. Clinton to travel to Macedonia
• Former Florida House speaker, wife, guilty of tax evasion

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