BE IT RESOLVED, that Agreement A188736 with the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Office of Justice Programs, to provide $100,000 in grant funds from the 2018 Terrorism Recruitment Prevention Grant during the period of January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2019 be approved; that the Chair of the Board be authorized to sign the Agreement on behalf of the county; that a supplemental appropriation of $50,000 to the 2018 Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office budget be approved; and that the Controller be authorized to accept and disburse funds as directed; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that sponsorship and acceptance of grant funding for this program by the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners does not imply a continued commitment by Hennepin County for this program when grants funds are no longer available.

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS) offered competitive grant funding to local governments to build resiliency in communities that are at-risk for recruitment into extremist organizations. The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office was awarded funding under the same grant in 2017; the 2018 project represents a continuation of that program.

The DPS 2018 Terrorism Recruitment Prevention grant will allocate $100,000 to continue building communities of trust within Hennepin County’s growing East African community. The funding will be used to facilitate several community workshops in partnership with various community partners. The strategic goals of this initiative are to educate the community about risks associated with social media activity, provide guidance and referrals to community resources, and inform families of potential public safety threats including drugs, gangs, gun violence, and others.

Funding under this grant will be used during two budget periods – $50,000 in 2018, and $50,000 in 2019.