Rep. Pat Harrigan
The U.S. Department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant program could be used to combat organized crime under legislation proposed on Dec. 19 by U.S. Rep. Pat Harrigan (R-NC).
“Drug cartels and transnational criminal organizations are operating on American soil with near impunity, and our local law enforcement agencies need the resources to fight back,” said Rep. Harrigan, who sponsored the COPS Anti-Organized Crime and Cartel Enforcement Act of 2025, H.R. 6911.
If enacted, H.R. 6911 would authorize $50 million annually from fiscal years 2026 through 2030 in COPS grant funds, which could be used to create specialized anti-organized crime units within local law enforcement agencies that would target organized crime, cartels, and transnational criminal organizations operating inside the United States.
“This bill gives police departments access to federal COPS grant funding specifically to create specialized units that can take on organized crime, with the training, equipment, and personnel they need to dismantle these operations,” Rep. Harrigan said. “We’re talking about the same criminal organizations flooding our streets with fentanyl and fueling violence in our communities, and if we’re serious about securing our communities, we need to give our police the tools to do it.”
Grant uses under the bill would include hiring additional officers, training personnel in intelligence-gathering and counter-organized crime tactics, and acquiring necessary equipment such as investigative technology, protective gear, tactical vehicles, and approved unmanned aerial systems.
H.R. 6911 also would prioritize funding for jurisdictions facing high levels of cartel, gang, and transnational criminal activity, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Harrigan’s office.
The measure has been referred to the U.S. House Judiciary Committee for consideration.