2017 Market Drivers: Body-Worn Camera Funding

I was honored to participate last week in panel discussion organized by a SIA member to forecast the priorities for the next presidential administration. At the risk of being perceived as yet another political pundit talking head, I focused my panel discussion on bipartisan policies that could drive business opportunities regardless of who wins the election in November. In the first of a series of blogs, focused on such government policies and regulations that could influence the market next year, I take a close look at government decisions and trends that could drive wider adoption of body-worn cameras by state and local government officials.

One of the few areas of government reform where there appears to be agreement between the two parties is the effort to reform our nation’s criminal justice system. A key component of such a legislative push will be to increase federal assistance for the deployment of body-worn cameras across the nation as a means to improve public trust in law enforcement in local communities.

In its most recent announcement awarding body-worn-camera grants, the U.S. Justice Department allocated more than $20 million to 106 local law enforcement agencies in 34 states and Puerto Rico. The release of these grants is part of the Body-Worn Camera Policy and Implementation Program launched last year and administered by the department’s Bureau of Justice Assistance. The recent award continues the momentum from the 2015 Body Worn Camera Pilot Implementation Program, in which 73 grant awards were approved out of 285 applications submitted, totaling approximately $23 million in grants funds that could be used to purchase 21,000 cameras. More information about the body-worn camera grant program can be found at https://www.bja.gov/bwc/.

If Congress considers comprehensive criminal justice reform legislation next year, the measure may include legislation authored by U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., to authorize a permanent federal grant program for body-worn cameras. If enacted into law, the “Safer Officers and Safer Citizens Act” would authorize $100 million annual over five years to local grantees who have adopted policies governing the use of these cameras.

Scott described the effectiveness of body-worn cameras as an essential tool that may also inspire community confidence in law enforcement when he stated, “We have seen that body-worn cameras can keep both officers and citizens safer, and that video can help provide clarity following an altercation. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth a thousand pictures.”

Through its Body-Worn Camera Working Group, SIA will continue to advocate that the next administration endorses the swift passage of the Scott legislation by Congress. The group will also continue to provide technical advice and guidance for the use of the cameras.

Federal efforts are only one part of the growing national campaign to promote the responsible use of body-worn cameras. As described in the SIA State Policy Digest, several states have enacted laws to authorize grants or mandate the use of this equipment. Taken together, federal and state government activity and SIA member innovation will continue to grow this segment of the law enforcement market in 2017.