Funding your departments is not always easy. Whether your area just does not have a big enough budget, or there is a lot of new technology that you want to get, it can be difficult. The good news is that there are 2 major sources of funding that you could try... Fundraising and grants.
Fundraising
There are many fundraising ideas out there but here we will just cover three.
1. “Tip-a-Cop”
With this fundraiser, your department would volunteer at a local restaurant as servers. You would then keep all the tips that you made throughout the night. This is a win-win for your department and the restaurant because the restaurant does not need to pay somebody to work that night, and your departments gets to keep a good amount of money.
2. Donut eating contest
See how many donuts each employee in your department can eat in a certain amount of time. Invite the public to watch the event take place and charge an admission fee. You can try to have donuts donated for the event, or buy them in bulk to get a discount on the total price.
Don't like donuts? Try something else like hot dogs, burgers, or pizza!
3. “Movie Night”
Get a large projector screen and arrange a movie rental and then play using movie using a projector. You can rent this equipment by clicking here. Allow people to sit outside and watch the movie, but charge entry fees and sell popcorn at the event. This can be a great fundraiser if you play a G or PG rated movie that kids & families would want to go see.
For more fundraising ideas check out: http://www.nleomf.org/programs/third-party-events/fundraising-ideas.html
Grants
If you look hard enough there are many resources that can help you to get a grant. Grants can get you a lot of money that you can then spend on new technology to help improve your department, including a brand new scheduling software like PlanIt.
1. PoliceGrantsHelp.com
This website allows you to search by keyword, category, state, or type of grant. The result is a list of grants that you can apply for right away.
2. Grants.gov
This government website allows you to search by all the criteria that policegrantshelp.com allows and more including eligibility.
If your police department is looking at spending more than you have in your current budget, check out some of these grant and fundraising options. While law enforcement grants and fundraisers both require time and effort, they are a great way to obtain money for better technology for your department.
