sian Congress of the United States Sees Bouse of Representatives Seecamovenroe Washington, BE 20515-0531 meena July 13, 2016 ‘Andtew A. Dore Deputy Director for Grant Operations Office of Community Oriented Policing Services USS. Department of Justice 145N Street, NE Washington, DC 20530 RE: City of San Bernardino COPS Hiring/Retention Program (CHRP) grant application 1004475 ‘Dear Deputy Director Dorr: I wt to express my support forthe City of San Bernardino, California Police Department's (SBPD) grant application to the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services forthe COPS Hiring/Retention Program (CHRP). If approved, this grant wil help the city reduce crime by providing funding forthe SBPD to hie eleven officers ofl patrol vacances in target ares, enhance crime identification measures and build trust by fostering relationships with loal residents ‘San Bemnardino’s financial troubles have forced SBPD to make substantial reductions to its police force, making it more dificult to patrol an already dangerous city. The city filed for bankruptcy in 2012. The bankruptcy combined with budget cuts and a declining tax base caused SSBPD to reduce their number of swom officers from 334 to 248. The SBPD was forced to make adjustments to their community policing plan and had to reconfigure how they deploy officers in order to prevent patrol gaps. CHRP funding will give the SBPD the ability 1o hire personnel to watch over at-risk neighborhoods while reaching out to residents in the hope of creating better relationships and preventing crime. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS} data rated San Bemardino as the most dangerous city in California, To make matters worst, San Bemardino's current officer-fo-resident ratio of 0.9 officers per 1,000 residents is far below the FBI recommendation of 2.4 officers per 1,000 residents fora city of San Bemardino’s size. The first seven months of 2016 have produced dozens of homicides andthe city is sll recovering from, the devastating terrorist attack at the Inland Regional Center on December 2, 2015. In spite of this, San Bernardino remains a resilient community. Hiring more officers is critical tothe ‘SBPD’s efforts to improve safety in our neighborhoods, build trust and mutual respect between police and residents, and develop critical community policing services.I strongly encourage you to give fll and fair consideration tothe San Bernardino Police Departments COPS Hiring Retention grant application Ifyou have any questions, please contact Curt Lewis, our Grants Coordinator, a 909-890-4445, Sincerely, Poh ApBer Pete Aguilar “Member of Congress