The Silver Spring’s Police Department requests for a total of $100,000 for the establishment and implementation of a sex offenders task force. The Sex Offenders Task Force (SOTF) will utilize the $100,000 grant in a number of ways. The task force’s main priority is the attainment of a dedicated staff that will work hard to tackle the issue of the increasing number of sex offenders within Silver Springs. Most of the task force’s staff will be sourced from the police department.
Additional staff will be hired on part time basis depending on workload and assignment types. Consequently, the compensation package for the part time staff will amount to $23, 000 for the initial six months of operations. The task force will also establish a parallel registry to track the activities of registered sex offenders within Silver springs. Members of the task force will also seek to increase the police department’s capacity to build cases against sex offenders.
The task force will offer a helping hand to both state and federal prosecutors. In addition, the task force is expected to boost the existing Public Service Announcement service against sex offenses. Another goal of the task force is to enhance early detection of sexual offenses especially in cases that involve children. The total operation costs of the task force will amount to approximately $57, 000. Travel, overhead, and accommodation costs of the task force are estimated to be around $20,000.
Budget
Budget Explanation
Personnel
Most of the task force will be made up of members of the police department. Police officers already have the necessary training on matters concerning sexual offences. Consequently, members of the police department will not require extra training. The Silver Springs Police Department will provide the SOTF with 90% of its staff.
The members of staff who are not from the police department will be hired for purposes of the awareness campaign. Therefore, all the additional staff will be hired on part time basis. The rest of outside staff will mostly perform clerical work within the task force’s several offices. However, hiring of part time clerical officers is restricted to situations of increased workload. The inspector of the Silver Springs Police Department will chair the SOTF. In addition, the inspector will ratify most of the department’s decisions.
Direct Expenses
The task force will incur very little direct expenses because it will be a branch of the Silver Springs Police Department. Consequently, the task force will utilize the department’s resources on most occasions. The only additional direct expenses that will be needed by the task force include purchase of stationery. The additional stationery will be made available to the part time civilian workers. The reason for the additional purchase of stationery is that some of the police-issued materials cannot be used by civilians. The purchase of two additional computers is a standard procedure whenever a new task force is instituted.
Operational Costs
The task force’s operation costs form the bulk of its entire budget. The reason for the increased operation budget provisions is that the task force is an active body that is determined to achieve positive results. Consequently, the task force will undertake an ambitious public campaign to encourage the public to report cases of sexual abuse before they escalate. In addition, the public campaign will target parents and guardians with the aim of educating them on how to discover cases of child abuse early. The task force will run an improved registry that focuses on repeat sex offenders. The new registry will also be used for research purposes.
Travel and Accommodation Costs
The travel costs will cover expenses for police officers who travel on ‘unofficial’ police duties. The accommodation costs will cover expenses for police officers in unofficial assignments that are only of benefit to the SOTF. In isolated incidences, the police will offer stipends and accommodation to informers.