Sheriff going after grants

In tough economic times, the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office is applying for every grant it can.

"I'm always looking for new sources of funding, especially for big-ticket items, whether it's technology, software, equipment or manpower," Sheriff Jim Hammond said.

In the last several months, the department has been awarded several grants totaling more than $400,000. Some came from the federal or state government, some from private corporations.

One grant gave the sheriff's office $56,700 to pay for a vehicle for jail use as well as paying for Tasers, Taser probe cartridges, Taser cameras and digital radios.

Two separate checks from the federal Justice Assistance Grant netted more than $300,000. Some of that money goes to community corrections and the Hamilton County district attorney's office, while the rest will help the sheriff's office buy nine patrol cars, 11 in-car laptops, an automated jail phone-answering system, 10 in-car video systems and two palm-print scanners.

A bulletproof vest grant worth $9,416 will help outfit several civil process officers.

"We do have to replace vests because of wear and tear," said G.A. Bennett, director of support services for the sheriff's office, who is in charge of researching grants. "We're always buying vests."

The sheriff said he first seeks no-match grants, meaning the county and its taxpayers do not have to match the amount received. Most recent grants have not required a match from the county or have required a small percentage match, he said.

The sheriff also has developed relationships in the business community, and one bought equipment for the sheriff's mounted patrol, which debuted in May. The sheriff's office declined to identify the benefactor, citing privacy reasons.

But applying for grants doesn't mean getting them. Funding from the Community Oriented Policing Services grant for $1.1 million was denied by the U.S. Department of Justice, as was a request for federal funding for the department's crisis intervention team.

And the department still is waiting on a request to the Knoxville Police Department for its Internet Crimes Against Children.

In his regular budget request, the sheriff requested about $27 million in the 2010 budget and received $26.8 million, according to Chattanooga Times Free Press archives. Sheriff Hammond said that was a "fair" amount.

"Money sources will always be an issue," the sheriff said. "I tell my (employees), 'My job is to go get you the tools to do your job. Your job is to do it.'"

County Commissioner Larry Henry said the commission approves almost all grant requests -- matching or nonmatching -- from the sheriff's office.

"Without them, that would be a direct influence on our budget and would cause additional concerns for us to pass on to the taxpayer," he said. "We have a restrained budget, and naturally it enables them to do many more things."

GRANTS RECEIVED

Some recent grants applied for and received

* Port security grant, Department of Homeland Security -- $93,484 (25 percent match)

* State Criminal Alien Assistance Program -- $56,700

* Recovery Act Justice Assistance Grant -- $321,997 ($286,442 goes to sheriff's office)

* Justice Assistance Grant -- $78,404

* Bulletproof vest grant -- $9,416

* Governor's Office of Highway Safety -- $50,000

Source: Hamilton County Sheriff's Office