Commission backs $165,000 FEMA grant to refurbish SFPD safe boat

Patrick Leung, SFPD grants manager, asked the commission to recommend that the Board of Supervisors adopt a resolution authorizing the chief of police to accept and expend a Department of Homeland Security'Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grant of $165,000 for the Safe Boat Refurbishment and Service Life Extension Program (SFSLEP).

Leung said the total award is $220,000 and the federal portion is $165,000; a 25 percent local match of $55,000 will come from the department's asset forfeiture account. He described the work as a refurbishment and overhaul of a 31-foot safe-boat patrol vessel that has been in service for over 14 years and would extend the vessel's service life by an estimated 10 to 15 years. Leung said the vessel carries three-dimensional sonar and radiation detection equipment and can be towed to regional partners as a mutual-aid asset.

The commission called for a motion. A motion to adopt the recommendation was made and seconded, public comment was closed, and the commission voted in favor. President Turman announced, "Motion carries unanimously."

Why it matters: The grant funds will preserve a specialized patrol asset for local and regional response and the use of asset forfeiture funds as a local match was explicitly stated during the presentation.

Vote and procedural details: The recorded action was a recommendation that the Board of Supervisors authorize acceptance and expenditure of the grant; the commission voted to forward that recommendation to the Board with a unanimous vote in open session.