All Americans deserve to live in safe communities. Those who share our commitment to working toward that end will be
interested in the SafeCities Network, an initiative recommended by the Crime Mapping and Data Driven Management Task Force, a joint task force of the Department of Justice and the National Partnership for Reinventing Government. The initiative, which builds on President Clinton's directive on Deterring and Reducing Gun Crime, was announced by Vice President Gore on June 21, 1999. It seeks to form performance partnerships between the Federal Government and community-based partners to reduce gun violence.

The SafeCities Network will be supported by a National Steering Committee that will include the Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services and Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), the Department of the Treasury, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (BATF), the National Partnership for Reinventing Government (NPRG), the White House Office of Management and Budget, and private sector partners.

While the initiative is not a grant program, the SafeCities Network will:

-- Connect communities and law enforcement agencies with peers working on similar issues.

-- Support partners and share lessons learned via a SafeCities Web site.

-- Give national recognition to innovative communities for their effective strategies and results.

-- Link to the U.S. Attorney and BATF integrated firearms violence reduction strategy.

-- Link to other Federal initiatives such as the Youth Crime Gun Interdiction Initiative, Gang Resistance Education and           Training Program, Weed and Seed program, Strategic Approaches to Community Safety Initiative, and Partnerships to Reduce Juvenile Gun Violence.

-- Facilitate access to technical support and expertise through a Federal champion.

-- Support consolidated planning on the community level and provide greater flexibility in administering grant funds with related goals as allowed under current law.

-- Provide assistance in assessing factors contributing to gun violence in each community and tailoring strategies and tactics to address them.

-- Help communities and local law enforcement agencies measure results and obtain expert advice in devising strategies for collecting, analyzing, and using data to achieve results.

Expressions of Interest can be submitted by the head of a community-based partnership, local government, network of local
governments, State or local law enforcement agency, or network of State or local law enforcement agencies. Where State funds or agencies are involved or where Federal funds flow through the State, there must be clear evidence of State partnership.

Submissions should be less than ten pages in length and applicants are encouraged to use existing plans and documents
wherever possible. Expressions of Interest in partnerships must be received by close of business on August 15, 1999. They may be submitted by mail, fax or e-mail to:

SafeCities
National Partnership for Reinventing Government
Suite 200
750 17th Street NW.
Washington, DC 20007
202-632-0390 (fax)
SafeCities@npr.gov (e-mail)

Resources:

For further information regarding the initiative, including the criteria that will be used by the National Steering Committee to select local partners, you may visit the NPRG Web site, www.npr.gov/library/announcement/rpf.html.

You may also call Jeff Slowikowski, OJJDP, 202-307-5929.