Explanation
BACKGROUND: The Division of Police was awarded funding through the FY 2018 Forensic DNA Laboratory Efficiency Improvement and Capacity Enhancement (EICE) Program Grant award from the National Institute of Justice. This federally supported program seeks to support and enable long term solutions for more efficient processing, recording, screening, and analysis of forensic DNA and/or DNA database samples and to increase the capacity of public forensic DNA and DNA database laboratories to process more DNA samples, thereby helping to reduce the number of forensic DNA and DNA database samples awaiting analysis. Funds have been awarded for DNA equipment, to include two (2) extraction instruments, one (1) screening instrument, three (3) quantification systems, and two (2) thermal cyclers. All expenditures for this grant award will be made from the equipment category.
The official city program contact authorized to act in connection with this $430,000.00 grant is Crime Lab Forensic Scientist III, Emma Becker. The grant award start date is January 1, 2019 and ends December 31, 2020.
Emergency Designation: Emergency legislation is necessary to make the funds available as soon as possible for the grant award, effective as of January 1, 2019.
FISCAL IMPACT: This ordinance authorizes an acceptance of the $430,000.00 grant award and the appropriation of those funds from the National Institute of Justice to aid in processing DNA samples more efficiently. This is the first year the Police Crime Lab has received this grant award. No matching funds are required and all grant expenditures will be reimbursed by the grant awarded funding.
Title
To authorize and direct the Mayor of the City of Columbus to accept a FY 2018 Forensic DNA Laboratory Efficiency Improvement and Capacity Enhancement Program Grant award from the National Institute of Justice; to authorize a Crime Lab Forensic Scientist III as the official city representative to act in connection with this grant; to authorize an appropriation of $430,000.00 from the unappropriated balance of the General Government Grant Fund to the Division of Police to cover the cost of the FY 2018 Forensic DNA Laboratory Efficiency Improvement and Capacity Enhancement Program Grant activities and expenditures; and to declare an emergency. ($430,000.00)
Body
WHEREAS, the Division of Police has been awarded funding through a FY 2018 Forensic DNA Laboratory Efficiency Improvement and Capacity Enhancement Program Grant from the National Institute of Justice for DNA equipment for the Police Crime Lab; and,
WHEREAS, the Columbus Police Crime Lab will benefit from updated equipment to aid in processing DNA samples; and,
WHEREAS, the Crime Lab Forensic Scientist III, Emma Becker, has been identified as the official city representative to act in connection with this FY 2018 Forensic DNA Laboratory Efficiency Improvement and Capacity Enhancement Program Grant and to provide information as required; and,
WHEREAS, the grant award period begins on January 1, 2019 and ends December 31, 2020; and,
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily operations of the Division of Police, Department of Public Safety, in that it is immediately necessary to accept and appropriate the FY 2018 Forensic DNA Laboratory Efficiency Improvement and Capacity Enhancement Program Grant award in order to make funds available for the grant award period, thereby preserving the public peace, health, property, safety, and welfare; now, therefore:
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
SECTION 1. That the Mayor of the City of Columbus is hereby authorized and directed to accept a FY 2018 Forensic DNA Laboratory Efficiency Improvement and Capacity Enhancement Program Grant for DNA equipment for the Columbus Police Crime Lab.
SECTION 2. That Crime Lab Forensic Scientist III, Emma Becker is designated as the official city program contact, authorized to act in connection with the FY 2018 Forensic DNA Laboratory Efficiency Improvement and Capacity Enhancement Program Grant, and is to provide any additional information required.
SECTION 3. That from the unappropriated monies in the General Government Grant Fund and from all monies estimated to come into said fund from any and all sources and unappropriated for any other purposes during the grant period, the sum of $430,000.00 is appropriated in Fund 2220 General Government Grants in Object Class 06 Equipment, per the account codes in the attachment to this ordinance. The appropriation will be activated upon receipt of a fully-executed agreement.
SECTION 4. That the funds necessary to carry out the purpose of this ordinance are hereby deemed appropriated in an amount not to exceed the available cash balance in the fund.
SECTION 5. That the monies appropriated in the foregoing Section 3 shall be paid upon order of the Director of Public Safety, and that no order shall be drawn or money paid except by voucher, the form of which shall be approved by the City Auditor.
SECTION 6. That, at the end of the grant period, any repayment of unencumbered balances required by the grantor is hereby authorized and any unused City match monies may be transferred back to the City fund from which they originated in accordance with all applicable grant agreements.
SECTION 7. That for reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this ordinance is hereby declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor, or ten days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.