Title
Authorization to Apply for the Promoting Access to Crisis Teams - Community Policing Development Grant (Ordinance S-50969)
Description
Request to authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to allow the Police Department to retroactively apply for, accept, and enter into an agreement with the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services for the Promoting Access to Crisis Teams - Community Policing Development grant. Further request authorization for the City Treasurer to accept, and for the City Controller to disburse all funds related to this item. The grant amount is not to exceed $400,000.
Report
Summary
The Promoting Access to Crisis Teams - Community Policing Development grant provides funding to support the implementation of crisis intervention teams, including embedding behavioral or mental health professionals with law enforcement agencies, training for law enforcement officers and embedded behavioral or mental health professionals in crisis intervention response, or a combination of these.
The Police Department has a Crisis Intervention Team that is apprised of a small amount of officers that are responsible to respond to active scenes and citizens currently in crisis. They are not designed to be out doing proactive work with our outreach team. The Maryvale Precincts Community Action Squad, made up of one sergeant and four officers has created the Community Health and Outreach for Individuals with Coordinated Encouragement (CHOICE) program. The mission of the CHOICE program is to assist unsheltered citizens by connecting them with the correct entities to provide them with needed assistance; while at the same time keeping the community safe, removal of blight concerns and proactively addressing open air drug use and nuisance crimes.
Grant funds would support training for officers within the CHOICE program, therefore embedding Crisis Intervention trained officers in the team. The goal would be to equip all officers with the skills necessary to address mental health crises, substance abuse issues, and the complexities of homelessness. Grant funds would support training for officers within the CHOICE program to provide crisis intervention trained officers on an outreach team.
Funding would provide the officers within the CHOICE program crisis intervention training, overtime and supplies necessary to address mental health crises, substance abuse issues, and the complexities of homelessness.
Currently the CHOICE program is limited to the availability of the Office of Homeless Solutions, and their vendor Community Bridges, to provide mental health support for the team. With this grant funded training, the CHOICE program would be able to facilitate more outreach programs, and provide a better service to individuals experiencing homelessness. Office of Homeless Solutions responds with the police department unit on their CHOICE projects days and is in regular contact with the police department unit throughout the week. That being said, Office of Homeless Solutions cannot respond to our location until it is made completely safe for them as they are civilians. Office of Homeless Solutions skill set cannot be utilized until after the fact which is often times too late. Training and embedding Crisis Intervention Teams police officers on the Community Action Unit would allow for the immediate understanding and dealing with an individual or individuals in crisis which could then be handed off to our Office of Homeless Solutions partners in a much more ideal situation.
The grant application is due on May 21, 2024. If authorization is not approved, staff will rescind application.
Contract Term
The project period is for two years and will begin on Oct. 1, 2024.
Financial Impact
No matching funds are required.
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Assistant City Manager Lori Bays and the Police Department.