 National/State Joint Law Enforcement Agreement continues operationPalikir, Pohnpei (FSM Information Services): February 9, 2012 - President Manny Mori recently designated Governor Johnson Elimo of Chuuk and Governor Lyndon H. Jackson of Kosrae as sub-allotee to grants pursuant to the Joint Law Enforcement Agreement (JLEA) between the respective States and the FSM National Government. According to the agreement, the States are delegated the authority to perform certain law enforcement functions under the 12 FSM Code Sections 1202-1203, such as the arrest and detention of persons having committed or being charged with a national offense, detection and prevention of national offenses, the incarceration of persons convicted of a national offense and under sentence of imprisonment, and the transportation of persons convicted of a national offense to and from the courthouse, among others. The JLEA, which has been in place for over ten years, was changed in 2010 when the parties put in place a continual effect provision in the agreement, eliminating the need to "remake" the agreement annually, unless the parties decided to alter or create new provisions. The allotment of grants to any State under the JLEA requires quarterly reporting on use of the funds from the state Attorney General's Office to the National Department of Justice, subject to the FSM Financial Management Act. Distribution of JLEA funds for Pohnpei State and Yap State is forthcoming pending submissions of their reports. The fiscal year 2012 budget law section 8, subsection 12 indicates that all the States will receive the follow amounts under the JLEA with the National Government: Chuuk State - $50,000 For more information, please contact the Department of Justice at 320-2644 or write to fsmpio@mail.fm. |