Washington, D.C. – Congressman Nathaniel Moran (R-TX-01) and Congresswoman Deborah Ross (D-NC-02) during National Police Week introduced the Strong Communities Act of 2025 to help to recruit additional law enforcement officers to serve their local communities. Specifically, this legislation would allocate existing funding from the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant program to be used for competitive grants for state and local law enforcement agencies. It does not increase government spending levels; rather, it prioritizes them in a way to back law enforcement.
“Law enforcement officers make significant sacrifices each and every day to protect our communities, often at great personal risk to themselves,” said Congressman Moran. “The Strong Communities Act of 2025, introduced during National Police Week, recognizes the commitment of our law enforcement by authorizing the use of grant funding to recruit and train individuals from the communities they call home. By investing in local talent, our legislation strengthens trust between law enforcement and their local communities, bolsters officer retention, and helps ensure law enforcement have the resources they need.”
“As police departments across the country continue to face critical shortages of officers, we must provide local departments with the support they need to recruit from their own communities,” said Congresswoman Ross. “Officers who live in the communities they serve are better positioned to build trust and meaningful relationships with the people they are sworn to protect. This National Police Week, I’m proud to work with Congressman Moran on this bipartisan legislation and remain committed to giving our local law enforcement officers the tools and resources they need to keep our communities safe.”
Specifically, the legislation would utilize existing grant funding to attract potential recruits to attend law enforcement training programs under the condition that enrollees work for their local law enforcement agencies for at least four years upon the completion of their training.
A “local” law enforcement agency is defined as one serving a community located within seven miles of the recruit’s residence or within 20 miles in the case of a county with fewer than 150,000 residents.
