Nearly $530,000 Awarded to AZDPS by the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety for Traffic Enforcement and Equipment

Phoenix — The Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) has been awarded over $527,000 in grant funding from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS). The grants will help with overtime costs for troopers during driving under the influence (DUI) enforcement details, targeted distracted driving enforcement operations, seatbelt enforcement details, collision reduction details, and the street racing task force. The grant funding will also support overtime staffing in Operational Communications and the State Crime Laboratory.

Funds will also be directed to the training of additional Drug Recognition Experts (DRE) and will also allow for the purchase of Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) speed measurement devices and other speed measuring radars to be used for traffic enforcement by troopers.

GOHS has allocated grant funds in support of these programs:

• $40,000 for seatbelt enforcement details
• $100,000 for DUI enforcement
• $30,000 for distracted driving enforcement
• $152,369 for STEP speed enforcement and equipment
• $30,000 for the Street Racing Task Force
• $70,000 in overtime funding for the state crime lab
• $15,000 for dispatch support for DUI & street racing enforcement
• $90,000 for DRE training, materials & supplies

“Speed, impaired driving, aggressive driving, and seatbelt usage continue to be the leading causes of serious injury and fatal collisions,” said Lieutenant Colonel Deston Coleman Jr., Assistant Director of the Highway Patrol Division at AZDPS. “Thanks to the continued support of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety, state troopers will be able to increase enforcement and make the roadways safer for the motoring public.”