The 1033 Program and the New Congress
Until recently, the 1033 Program was an effective way to protect Americans against terrorist attacks. But now, with a new Congress, the program may be in jeopardy. In this article, we will discuss the program and the new legislation that is reforming it.
Legislation reforming the 1033 Program
Congressional attention has been drawn to the 1033 Program, a federal program that allows domestic policing agencies to acquire surplus military equipment from the Department of Defense. This program isn’t new but has been subject to some noteworthy reforms in 2015. One such reform is the Stop and Frisk program, created in the wake of the George Floyd shooting. This program, which is still in place, uses a mix of both private and public funds to target high-risk neighborhoods. Its purported benefits aren’t all that promising.
The 1033 Program is just one of many programs aimed at bolstering police and community relations. This includes the Department of Homeland Security’s Urban Areas Strategy Initiative and Byrne Justice Assistance Grants. While these programs are not directly connected to one another, they are allies in the war against crime. These programs may not seem like they have a lot in common, but the end results are the same. The militarized policing of today’s world is alarming, to say the least.
As a matter of fact, the 1033 Program is a bit of a misnomer. This is especially true when one considers that the program has been around since 1996. As a result, most agencies haven’t developed policies to govern the use of the program’s many baubles. While this oversight is a serious concern, there are other, more tangible reasons for Congress to take the requisite steps to address this glaring oversight.
One way to address the program’s shortcomings is to take a hard look at the funding mechanisms that support it. A Washington State lawmaker recently introduced legislation that would curb the 1033 Program’s most ominous activities. This would include the aforementioned Stop and Frisk program, and the bafflingly named Urban Areas Strategy Initiative. Aside from a budgetary cap, these measures would also require public officials to investigate the 1033 Program’s ilk and look for other ways to help reduce the militarization of domestic law enforcement.
The best way to implement this is to create a streamlined 1033 Program that only authorizes the most important items and prohibits any and all others. This would also ensure that the 1033 Program is used for what it was intended for – providing equipment for law enforcement – rather than simply distributing military-grade equipment to police departments and other government agencies across the country. The resulting reduction in unnecessary and unused military-grade equipment would reduce the cost to taxpayers, and perhaps most importantly, reduce the number of people killed by police officers and criminals alike.
