NS - Grant - Ratification of Application for Interoperable Communications Technology Grant

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t COPS Interoperable Communications Technology Grant Program Please be advised that a hold may be placed on this application if it is deemed that the applicant agency is not in good standing on other U S Department of Justice grants, has other grant compliance issues that would make the applicant agency ineligible to receive COPS funding,, and/or is not cooperating with an ongoing compliance investigation regarding a current COPS grant award A hold may also be placed on this application if it is deemed that the applicant agency is not in compliance with federal civl rights laws andlor is not cooperating with an ongoing federal dull rights investigation. . Eligibility Requirements The lnteroperable Communications Technology Program is not an open solicitation. Agencies are invited to apply The invited agendes will involve both larger and smaller population centers. The COPS office will invite the top 50 Metropol'dan Statistical Areas 7 Defined by U.S Census Bureau, Statistical {MBAs} in the nation plus the largest three by population per state tD apply for funding, if Abstract of the united States: 2002 applicable. We will also el'aninate-any duplicates from these iwo.groups and remove jurisdictions tha# were funded under this program in Fiscal Years 2003 and 2004 ~- COPS will collaborate with N1ST, CommTech within the Nations! Institute of Justice (N1J), the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA} and SAFECOM on a competitive grant program in FY 2005 to maximize the strategic impact of the funding that is available for interoperable communications equipment. The program wfil provide competitive funding to local jurisdictions to demonstrate effective solutions for achieving inieroperability Selection of Applicants: Metroo4litan Statistical Area {MSA~ For this targeted solicitation, invitees are the top 50 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MBAs) across the nation plus the largest three per state and territory, as apprcable. After eliminating duplicate MBAs from the above two categories, this approach resulted in approxima#ely 138 candidates. A lead jurisdiction was designated within each MBA, which should promote multi-jurisdictional and multi-disdplinary, interoperabie partnerships with neighboring localities The U S Census Bureau regularly utilizes Metropolitan Statistical Areas for demographic purposes The general concept of an MSA is that of a core area containing a large population nudeus, together with. adjacent communities having a high degree of economic and sodal integration with that core' Since nearly every state has at least one. MSA applipnt under the COPS invitation method, there will be a variety of applications based on the size of population, geographic characteristics, and critical infrastructures Jurisdictions that were awarded COPS grants under the FY03 and FY04 interoperable Communicafions Technology programs are not eligible to apply this year For additional information, please contact your COPS Grant Program Specialist by calling the COPS Office Response Center at 800.421.6770. 35