Jim Ramstad: “as cochair of the Law Enforcement Caucus, I believe it is short-sighted and counterproductive to underfund Byrne grants…”

“as cochair of the Law Enforcement Caucus, I believe it is short-sighted and counterproductive to underfund Byrne grants for law enforcement. I have seen in my home State of Minnesota firsthand the importance of Byrne grants to local police in reducing crime and improving public safety. They have funded overtime pay, task forces to fight the war on drugs, equipment, and buy money to enforce our drug laws. We must never forget our cops are on the front lines in the war on crime and fighting drug dealers and protecting our homeland. And before we bleed too much for our Census Bureau, I think we should remember, this agency in this bill already receives a $72 million increase. We are talking about funding cops, the war on drugs, homeland security, or $72 million more for the Bureau of Census. To me that is a no-brainer: we fund Byrne grants, which every law enforcement official in America is pleading for. I urge adoption of the Kennedy amendment. Mr. Chairman, Edmund Burke once said the most important reason we have government is to keep people safe. The Edward Byrne Memorial Grant program is a key component of the federal efforts to make our communities safe. Named for a fallen New York City police officer, the Byrne Grant program has been a vital tool since 1988 in helping state and local law enforcement fight violent and drug-related crime.…”