Ann Kirkpatrick - for Arizona

Kirkpatrick Pledges Full Funding For Byrne Grant to Assist Criminal Record Keeping in Navajo County

Holbrook, AZ – Former State Representative Ann Kirkpatrick, Democratic candidate to represent Arizona's 1st Congressional District, met with Navajo County Sheriff Gary Butler, Deputy Sheriff K.C. Clark, and chiefs of police from across Navajo County to discuss funding of the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program and the effect of the program's recent cuts on criminal records in Navajo County.
 
The Arizona Criminal Justice Commission (ACJC) has expressed concern about a lack of resources for its Criminal Records Improvement Plan, which aims to enhance coordination of law enforcement records in part through greater use of the Internet.
 
Up until recent years, similar projects had primarily been funded through Byrne grants.  However, funding for improvements to criminal records from the Byrne Grant Program has been cut by almost 40%, from $9 million in Fiscal Year 2004 to $5.5 million in Fiscal Year 2007.
 
The cuts to the Byrne Grant Program are of particular concern to Navajo County, which the ACJC Statistical Analysis Center found to have a Records Quality Index score of 87 in a report issued in June. This was the lowest score of any county in the state. Cochise County recorded the second-lowest score at 175, and Arizona had an overall RQI score of 236.
 
Kirkpatrick, a former prosecutor, assured Navajo County's law enforcement at Monday's meeting that she would work to reverse the repeated cuts to the program's budget that have put critical projects in Navajo County at risk.
 
"Every single day, sheriff deputies and police officers in Navajo County put their lives on the line for the safety of our community," said Kirkpatrick.  "Washington is failing both our communities and our first responders by continuing to slash funding for the Byrne Grant.  Congress needs to do what's right and give Sheriff Butler and Deputy Sheriff Clark the resources to continue their extraordinary work protecting the families of Navajo County."
 
 "I am running for Congress because we need to change Washington to make Arizona's first responders the priority they need to be," concluded Kirkpatrick.
 
Kirkpatrick's candidacy for Congress has drawn strong support from Arizona's law enforcement. She recently earned the endorsement of the Arizona Police Association, and has been endorsed by Sheriff Butler, Winslow Police Chief Steve Garnett, Navajo County Attorney Mel Bowers, Coconino County Attorney Terence Hance, and Coconino County Sheriff Bill Pribil.
 
The meeting at the Navajo County Sheriff's Office was part of Kirkpatrick's District-Wide Tour for Change. She visited 37 different communities from across the district in just eleven days.
 
BACKGROUND
 
What is the Byrne Grant?
 
The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (formerly the Edward Byrne Law Enforcement Assistance Grant Program) was created by the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 to help state and local governments crack down on violent crime and the drug trade.
 
Congress combined the original Byrne Grant Program with the Local Law Enforcement Block Grant Program in November 2004 and made deep cuts in the program. In 2007, Congress further slashed total funding from $520 million to $170 million. Arizona's share of the funding has been cut by over $5 million between 2004 and 2007.
 
Byrne Grants have been used to fund interstate drug and gang task forces, DNA database identification, sex-offender registry databases, drug rehab and treatment facilities and neighborhood watch programs. They are the primary source of funding for the Arizona Criminal Justice Commission (ACJC), which coordinates statewide efforts against the drug trade and gang activity. 

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 Former State Representative Ann Kirkpatrick is a former legislator, county prosecutor, small business owner, mother, and a community leader who served as President of the Northern Arizona United Way. Born in McNary, Kirkpatrick is a native of rural Arizona and has lived and worked in the 1st Congressional District all her life.

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