Under the Violent Crime and Control Act of 1994, the U.S. Department of Justice COPS Office would request grant application information from state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies in order to properly award grant funds to advance public safety through community policing.
For FY2013, the COPS Hiring Program (CHP) is once again being opened up to all agencies that are eligible to apply, unlike in FY 2012 where it was limited to agencies who applied in FY2011 but did not receive funding. During the FY2011 application solicitation, which was also the last open solicitation conducted for CHP, only around 3000 agencies applied. In order to keep this number accurate for the current solicitation season, the COPS Office does not request a change in burden hours for FY13 COPS Application Package (CAP). However, due to new OMB policy changes that require components to calculate burden for common forms used, COPS does request an increase in burden to account for the SF 424 that applicants have to fill out in addition to the CAP.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.