The Department of Justice today announced 206 awards, totaling more than $97 million, to American Indian tribes, Alaska Native villages, tribal consortia and tribal designees. The announcement was made in Washington, D.C., at the 2015 Tribal Leader Briefing, sponsored by the National Congress of American Indians, and included Tribal leaders, Members of Congress and Administration officials.
The following eight tribes in New Mexico received grant awards totaling $8,053,088.00:
· The Pueblo of Kewa received a $449,805.00 award from the Violence Against Women Tribal Program of the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW).
· The Pueblo of Acoma received two awards totaling $1,167,655.00; one from the Public Safety and Community Policing Program of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), and the second from Justice Systems and Alcohol and Substance Abuse Program of the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA).
· The Pueblo of Isleta received a $402,704.00 award from the Comprehensive Tribal Victim Assistance Program of the Office of Victims of Crime (OVC).
· The Pueblo of Jemez received five awards totaling $2,667,177.00 from: (1) COPS’ Public Safety and Community Policing Program; (2) BJA’s Justice Systems and Alcohol and Substance Abuse Program; (3) OVW’s Violence Against Women’s Tribal Program; (4) OVC’s Children’s Justice Act Partnerships for Indian Communities; and (5) the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention’s Juvenile Healing to Wellness Courts Program.
· The Pueblo of Nambe received a $440,775.00 award from OVW’s Violence Against Women’s Tribal Program.
· The Pueblo of Pojoaque received a $375,735.00 award from OVW’s Violence Against Women’s Tribal Program.
· The Pueblo of Sandia received two awards totaling $1,649,337.00; one from COPS’ Public Safety and Community Policing Program, and the second from BJA’s Justice Systems and Alcohol and Substance Abuse Program.
· The Pueblo of Zuni received a $900,000.00 award from OVW’s Violence Against Women’s Tribal Program.
“This money will help tribal leaders in New Mexico make their communities safer places for families to live. With these resources, our tribal communities can develop comprehensive services for victims of crime, address violence against Native American women and children, and tackle other public safety priorities,” said U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office congratulates the tribes receiving these public safety grant awards, and reiterates its commitment to working with all tribes in New Mexico to enhance public safety in their communities.”
“For the past five years, the CTAS program has helped tribes develop their own comprehensive approaches to making their communities safer and healthier,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Stuart F. Delery. “CTAS grants have funded hundreds of programs to better serve crime victims, promote community policing, and strengthen justice systems. This year’s awards also support efforts to reduce domestic and dating violence, and promote wellness and healing for tribal youth, among many other programs.”
The awards are made through the Justice Department’s Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS), a single application for tribal-specific grant programs. The Department developed CTAS through COPS and OVW, and administered the first round of consolidated grants in September 2010.
Since then, more than 1,400 grants totaling more than $620 million have been provided to enhance law enforcement practices, victim services, and sustain crime prevention and intervention efforts in nine purpose areas; public safety and community policing; justice systems planning: alcohol and substance abuse; corrections and correctional alternatives; children’s justice act partnerships; services for victims of crime; violence against women; juvenile justice; and tribal youth programs.
American Indians and Alaska Natives experience disproportionate rates of violence andvictimization and often encounter significant obstacles to identifying and accessing culturallyrelevant services. CTAS funding helps tribes to develop and strengthen tribal justice systems’ response to crime, while significantly increasing programs and services available to them.
A listing of today’s awards is available at www.justice.gov/tribal/.
Today’s announcement is part of the Justice Department’s ongoing initiative to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
Information from the Department of Justice