The Victims of Crime Act provides a grant program that is administred by the State of Nevada Office of the Attorney General.  Funds from that program are utilized to increase the quality and availability of emergency services to the victims of crime here in Nevada.  The funds are availalbe for several authorized purposes, including paying the salary and fringe benefits of a victim advocate position.  There is a twenty five percent matching funds requirement.

Over the past three years the Sparks Police Department has utilized a grant from the Victims of Crime Act and Violence Against Women Act to help subidize the costs for salary and benifits for the Victim Advocate who works in the Sparks Police Department.  At the end of the grant, the position was absorbed into the authorized complement of personnel at the Police Department.  That position is very busy to the point that the workload exceeds the hours available to provide serivices to victims.  The Victim Advocate has provided services to 3,701 victims of crime since the inception of the position in May 2008.

The Police Department Administration has identified a need for an additional Victim Advocate so that we can provide the best possible service to the victims of crime in our community.  A funding source for that position has not been identifed prior to this grant becoming available.

This Washoe pilot program being offered to the Sparks Police Department will cover 75% of the costs of employing a second Victim Advocate.  The remaining funds required, $15,457 is in the existing budget for grant match.  The idea behind this pilot project is for the Attorney General's office to have all of the victim services in Washoe County working together to eliminate the duplicaiton of services, to provide the best possilbe services, and to provide follow-up services to reduce the instances of second and third time victimization, an area where the Sparks Police Department faces severe challenges due to the constant influx of new victims and the limiations faced by having only one Victim Advocate.

The grant represents 9 months of funding for the position.  This is due to the fact that although the funds would be available July 1, 2015, the Sparks Police Department will, if approved, need to advertise the postion and collect applications, test and interview for the position and then conduct a background investigation of the applicant chosen to fill the position.  It is estimated that the hiring process will take approximately 3 months giving an estimated start date of October 5, 2015 (payroll number 22).

The City Council could decline the grant and seek funding elswhere or decline to increase the capacity to provide services to victims of crime in Sparks.

I move to approve and accept the State of Nevada Attorney General's Victim of Crime Act grant in the amount of $46,369 to fund a Victim Advocate position.