Attorney General Todd Blanche at a White House Rose Garden briefing on September 15, 2026. Archive photo: Cashen Turner/The White House, public domain. Cropped. Not Friday’s Model Cities announcement.
The Justice Department selected Jacksonville, East Baton Rouge Parish, Jackson and St. Louis to receive nearly $300 million in federal public-safety funding through its Model Cities Initiative, according to an announcement Friday afternoon.
The department’s release was first published at about 1:57 p.m. Eastern and updated at about 2:51 p.m. to identify the specific departments funded. The announcement did not disclose a separate dollar allocation for each jurisdiction.
The money is intended to support locally developed plans to reduce violent crime, improve cooperation among law enforcement agencies and expand public-safety services. The department said it will work with each selected jurisdiction to finalize and implement its plan.
Four jurisdictions selected
The recipients are Jacksonville, Florida; East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana; Jackson, Mississippi; and St. Louis, Missouri.
In its updated list of funded departments, the Justice Department identified Baton Rouge-East Baton Rouge Parish, the City of Jackson, the City of Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and the City of St. Louis Police Department.
The department said the applications reflected each jurisdiction’s different public-safety needs and starting conditions. The selection does not mean the four jurisdictions will receive equal shares of the nearly $300 million.
Hiring, equipment and public-safety services
The funding can support hiring sworn officers and other personnel involved in enforcement, prosecution and related public-safety work. Other priorities include new technology, equipment purchases or leases, and stronger forensic capabilities.
The department also listed services addressing mental health and substance use, as well as efforts to reduce repeat offending, among the activities the funding will support.
Its approach brings together law enforcement, local officials and community partners rather than prescribing one identical plan for all four jurisdictions.
“The Model Cities Initiative reflects the Trump Administration’s commitment to reducing crime across the country and ensuring the safety of every American,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said in the release.
Attorney general visits planned next month
Blanche is scheduled to visit the four jurisdictions in November to present the awards and meet with law enforcement officials, elected leaders and community partners, the department said. Friday’s release did not provide the dates of those visits.
The Justice Department launched the initiative in June 2026. Friday’s announcement identifies the four selected jurisdictions and the public-safety priorities the funding is intended to support; it does not establish that the money has already been spent or that the planned programs have produced results.
National Desk | WASHINGTON
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