Why this Program Exists
Law enforcement finds it increasingly difficult
to penetrate drug crime organizations.
Drug distribution gangs are based
more and more on familial and village
associations, and drug dealers often
employ sophisticated communications
technologies and devices that detect
some covert transmitters used by undercover
officers. In response to this threat
to our country, Congress funded the
Technology Transfer Program to help
state and local officers in their fight
against drug traffickers. Through the
Technology Transfer Program, CTAC provides
a wide range of overt and covert
technologies-most of which had their
start at CTAC or in the inventories of the
FBI, DEA, DoD, Customs, and other U.S.
agencies. Since the program began in
1998, Congress has appropriated $79.5
million, empowering CTAC to provide
advanced devices and systems to over
3800 of America's 18,500 state and local
law enforcement agencies. These technologies
locate hidden compartments,
allow cops to see through darkness,
detect money laundering, penetrate complex
drug trafficking conspiracies with
digital wiretaps, communicate across
agency lines in real time despite incompatible
radios, track drug dealers and
convert shaky, apparently useless surveillance
video into clear, court-presentable
evidence. Many arrests, indictments, and
convictions have been credited to the
technologies. Officer safety has improved
as a result of the deployment of
Technology Transfer Program systems
and devices.
Cop Friendly
State and local law enforcement agencies
are often surprised at how easy it is for a
qualified department to get high tech
help from this program and how smoothly
our turnkey method works: Apply, Train, Receive. Everything is included,
even site-specific engineering and installation
of Wireless Interoperability
Systems. At our regional workshop in
Charlotte, North Carolina, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department's Deputy
Chief Glen Mowrey looked out at representatives
of more than 200 police agencies
in the audience and said, "All of us in
this room understand the politics of local
law enforcement budgeting. For a chief or
a sheriff to go before local elected leaders
and ask for more money to buy technologies
instead of to hire additional officers
is quite difficult." CTAC's Technology
Transfer Program is NOT a grant program.
There is NO transfer of money. Instead,
state and local law enforcement agencies
decide what they need and apply for the
available systems and devices that meet
those requirements. Applications are
reviewed thoroughly but quickly and, as
long as funds are available, technologies
are purchased and scheduled for delivery
and training. The Program's goal is to get
the technologies deployed rapidly to help
state and local authorities do the most
damage possible to drug criminals and
their organizations and to increase
officer safety.
How to Apply:
To be considered for the Technology
Transfer Program, a law enforcement
agency must submit two documents:
(1) An official letter signed by top management
(Chief, Sheriff, Task Force
Commander, District Attorney) and (2) the
completed Technology Transfer Program
application. The letter must (1) request
participation in the Technology Transfer
Program, (2) choose up to three among
the listed technologies, and (3) agree to
provide evaluation reports assessing the
impact of the received technology on the department's drug
enforcement efforts. The
signed letter of request must
be mailed on your agency's
letterhead to the program's
administrators: Electronic
Proving Ground, Counterdrug
Office Fort Huachuca,
Arizona 85613. In addition,
you may complete the
Technology Transfer Program application form on-line at
www.epgctac.com. Alternatively, you
may request a catalog of the technologies
available, which includes a copy of the
applicaton, by calling (877) 374-2822,
Monday through Thursday, 9:00 a.m. to
6:00 p.m., ET.
Mandatory Training
& Evaluation:
Mandatory, scheduled training, which
includes paid travel and partial per diem,
precedes the delivery of any of the systems
and devices, and there are followup
evaluations at 90, 180, and 270 days.
What's Available:
A full list of the systems and devices
currently available from the Technology
Transfer Program can be viewed on our
web site www.epgctac.com, or a catalog
detailing the available technologies will
be mailed upon request by calling
(877)-374-2822.
