The New Jersey Police Chief Magazine | January 2021
New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police Law Enforcement Accreditation Program Updates ; DOF Certification , Public Safety Accreditation Program and Virtual Assessments
By Capt . Harry J . Delgado , Ed . S ( Ret .), NJSACOP LEAP-PSAP Accreditation Program Director
DOJ Certification NJSACOP LEAP has issued letters of eligibility certifying nearly one hundred law enforcement agencies determined — or , within the past 36 months , has already determined — that the agency is in compliance with two mandatory safe policing principles :
A . Adherence to Applicable Laws The applying agency maintains use of force policies that adhere to all applicable federal , state , and local laws . B . Prohibition of Choke Holds
The applying agency maintains use of force policies that prohibit the use of choke holds , except in situations where the use of deadly force is allowed by law .
Certification is a prerequisite to a law enforcement agency ’ s eligibility for Department of Justice discretionary grant funding . The NJSACOP LEAP – PSAP as a credentialing body will maintain a database of certified agencies within our jurisdiction , and submit this list to the U . S . Department of Justice ’ s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services ( or “ COPS Office ”), which will serve as the repository for the list of all eligible law enforcement agencies .
Those LEAs that believe they comply with the Standards of Certification can immediately initiate a letter via email to the NJSACOP LEAP-PSAP Accreditation Program Director at hdelgado @ njsacop . org seeking further review and approval . In addition to the application letter , LEAs must include a copy of the agency ’ s use of force policy , or policies addressing the two mandatory standards , and the following numbers :
ORI : This is the assigned FBI number for a law enforcement agency . Records should be able to assist with locating this number .
Employer Identification Number : It ’ s the organization ' s IRS ID . EIN is assigned by the IRS .
DUNS : A DUNS number is a unique nine- or 13-digit sequence recognized as the universal standard for identifying and keeping track of entities receiving federal funds . An agency will only have a DUNS number if they have applied for federal funding . An agency can look up their DUNS using this link : https :// www . dnb . com / duns-number / lookup . html
Once the Application letter is received with the additional documents , the policies are reviewed for compliance , and the ORI , EIN , and DUNS numbers are populated in the database . Once the review is completed , a NJSACOP LEAP Letter of Eligibility is emailed to the agency .
LEAs that plan to apply for DOJ discretionary grant funds for FY 2021 must be certified or have started the certification process no later than January 31 , 2021 . * FY 2021 grant solicitations occur between October 1 , 2020 , and September 30 , 2021 .
PUBLIC SAFETY ACCREDITATION PROGRAM Participation in our PSAP program continues to grow . Many agencies currently subscribe to the PSAP Standards Manual on PowerDMS and are working earnestly towards accreditation .
Our program was developed with the goal of meeting the needs of a broad spectrum of law enforcement agencies in New Jersey to follow both best state and national practices in the field of law enforcement . To that end , NJSACOP has identified yet another need within these agencies and other Public Safety Communications Centers . This would be a logical extension of our current program , the NJSACOP LEAP-PSAP .
This program includes voluntary standards for communications agencies within the State of New Jersey . The standards are not intended as a substitute or replacement for any legal requirement that may apply to agencies involved in 9-1-1 communications services in the State of New Jersey . As the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police Law Enforcement Accreditation Program Director , it is acknowledged that federal , state and local law , collective bargaining agreements , administrative regulations and local ordinances take precedence over these standards .
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