Pascrell Praises Biden’s Commitment to Public Safety

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09), co-chair of the Congressional Law Enforcement Caucus, praised the Biden administration’s recently announced strategy to prevent and respond to gun crime and ensure public safety. As part of the initiative, President Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland convened state and local leaders, including New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal, at the White House to discuss coordinating crime prevention efforts.

“I commend President Biden for his steadfast commitment to public safety,” said Rep. Pascrell. “We are a nation of laws, and officials must have the staffing and tools needed to enforce those laws and keep our communities safe. That’s precisely why I called for increasing funding for COPS Hiring grants, and I was glad to see President Biden fulfill his promise to advance community policing by calling for an additional $300 million for this critical program. After the previous administration shamefully called for defunding federal policing grants four years in a row, it is a breath of fresh air to have an ally of public safety back in the White House. The Biden administration ensuring that American Rescue Plan funds can support the hiring and retention of law enforcement officers will pay dividends as we continue to combat gun violence in our nation. With President Biden leading the way, I am confident we will be able to grow federal programs like COPS and Byrne JAG that help keep Americans safe.”

The Biden plan comes one month after Rep. Pascrell reintroduced his Crime Gun Tracing Modernization Act which will finally give the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) the ability to electronically search for the records of guns used in crimes across the country. On April 28, Rep. Pascrell led 159 Members of Congress in calling for an increase in funding for the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne JAG) and the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) programs. Last year, Rep. Pascrell penned an op-ed in the New York Daily News discussing how Donald Trump sought to defund and denigrate law enforcement throughout his entire presidency.

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