Recruitment and Retention Grant
The Recruitment and Retention Grant from the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance funds incentives and training support to help law enforcement agencies hire and keep qualified officers.
Funder: Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance
Due Dates: Rolling
Funding Amounts: Up to $10,000 in bonuses per experienced officer; up to $8,000 per new/no-experience officer; $5,000–$15,000 per graduate for training costs; total program investment of $24 million.
Summary: Grant supports Tennessee law enforcement agencies in hiring and retaining officers through incentives, bonuses, and cost-sharing for training.
Description
This grant program, administered by the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance through the POST Commission, aims to strengthen law enforcement staffing across Tennessee. The initiative is designed to attract experienced officers from other states, as well as newly certified or previously certified officers within Tennessee, to address staffing shortages due to attrition. The program seeks to hire 1,000 police officers annually and provide bonuses to at least 3,000 new law enforcement officers. In addition, it offers cost-sharing for training expenses at the Tennessee Law Enforcement Training Academy (TLETA), reducing or eliminating the financial burden for local agencies.
