Don Nickles: “The grant programs administered through the COPS Program were 100 percent earmarked in 2004 appropriations bills. The…”

“The grant programs administered through the COPS Program were 100 percent earmarked in 2004 appropriations bills. The administration feels the earmarking has gotten out of hand and seeks to eliminate funding in favor of a new grant program located in another account. This new account consolidates almost all State and local law enforcement grant programs and activities. Rather than have the programs spread out over a half dozen accounts, it assumes consolidation in one account called justice assistance. A lot of the old COPS Program is included in the new Justice Assistance Program. Maybe it won't be quite so directed by Congress. Maybe it will be more appropriate. I don't know if it is the Federal Government's responsibility to hire hundreds more police officers in North Dakota or Oklahoma. I happen to be one who says: We all have to do our fair share. I just don't know that it is the Federal Government's responsibility to be putting police officers in every little town in America. We have accomplished our objective in hiring and training 118,000 police officers. We should say a job well done and not continue this program forever.”