WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski (IL-13) announced that the cities of Springfield, Champaign, Belleville, Decatur, Alton and Edwardsville will receive a combined $322,977 from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program.

“Every single day, our first responders put their lives on the line to keep our communities safe. It’s critical that we make sure they have the equipment, training and technology needed to stay safe on the job,” said Congresswoman Budzinski.“I’m so glad to announce that communities in Central and Southern Illinois will be receiving more than $322,000 in federal grants to support our local law enforcement agencies.”

Additional information on the funding awarded to cities in Illinois’ 13th Congressional District can be found below: 

• $102,523 for the City of Springfield will be used to sustain and increase the number of officers to keep up with the growing department and community requests.

• $86,018 for the City of Champaign will be used to train new sergeants and lieutenants and provide employees with emotional health training.

• $58,403 for the City of Belleville will be used to upgrade outdated technology and equipment.

• $42,876 for the City of Decatur will be used to deploy more police officers in areas with high crime and gun violence rates.

• $18,697 for the City of Alton will be used to purchase safety-enhancing equipment for police vehicles.

• $14,460 for the City of Edwardsville will be used to purchase radar units for patrol vehicles to increase traffic safety enforcement.

The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program is the leading source of federal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions. The JAG Program provides states, tribes and local governments with critical funding necessary to support a range of program areas including law enforcement, prosecution, indigent defense, courts, crime prevention and education, corrections and community corrections, drug treatment and enforcement, planning, evaluation, technology improvement, and crime victim and witness initiatives and mental health programs and related law enforcement and corrections programs, including behavioral programs and crisis intervention teams. Additional information on the JAG program can be found here. 

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