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Mansfield seeks $151,400 VOCA grant to start first-responder mental‑health program
Summary
City staff discussed a resolution to apply for a Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grant of up to $151,400 to fund training, peer teams and critical‑incident stress response for police, fire and communications staff; a 20% local match is required.
MANSFIELD, Texas — Mansfield city staff discussed a resolution (agenda item 25‑6391) to apply for grant funding through the First Responder Mental Health Program under the Victims of Crime Act, with the total award for the city not to exceed $151,400 and a required 20% matching contribution either in cash or in‑kind services.
Councilwoman Julie Short asked for the item to be pulled from the consent agenda to get more detail about how the program works and whether the grant covers a single year or is charged based on use. “I just wasn't getting a full understanding of how the program works and if the grant is for 1 year or is it is it charged based on based on use?” Short said.
Kevin Sandifer, identified in the meeting as the city’s EMS chief, told the council the program pays for training across the three public‑safety divisions — police, fire and communications — and also covers expenses for provider visits. “The short about this short and long about this program is that it is it covers training for all the all department members across all 3 divisions, police, fire, and our communication specialist. It covers, also expenses for providers visits,” Sandifer said. He said the city plans to establish peer teams in each division and a critical incident management stress team to respond to incidents within Mansfield.
Sandifer described the grant as a one‑year award and said it could be renewed. “Yes. So this grant right now is for 1 year. It can be we believe I think the Verba said it could be renewed up to 3 years. The biggest up front cost for us right now is gonna be the training. That's why you see that $151,400,” he said.
City staff emphasized the largest up‑front expense would be training to establish specialty trainings and peer‑support teams; the grant also would cover provider visits for personnel. The resolution text read aloud at the meeting specifies the grant would be administered by the Office of the Governor of the State of Texas under the Victims of Crime Act grant program and requires a 20% match.
The resolution was discussed during the meeting after being pulled from the consent agenda for clarification. The transcript records the staff explanation and council questions; the meeting record shows the consent agenda was later acted on, but the transcript does not list a separate roll‑call vote specifically for agenda item 25‑6391.
If approved and awarded, the grant would fund training and peer‑support capacity for Mansfield’s first responders; officials said training costs account for most of the request.
