Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Is 1 of 4 Agencies Chosen for Nearly $300 Million in Federal Crime Funding, While a Pedestrian Safety Push Runs Through May

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office was named Oct. 30 as one of four law enforcement agencies in the country chosen for the U.S. Justice Department's new Model Cities Initiative, which carries a federal commitment of nearly $300 million. The sheriff's office has not said how much of that money Jacksonville will receive, and it says amounts and timelines will be announced in the coming weeks. Separately, JSO began a months-long traffic enforcement push on Nov. 3 aimed at protecting people on foot and on bikes.

What was announced

According to Action News Jax, the Model Cities Initiative is a multiyear program, and JSO will share in the roughly $300 million national commitment. The other agencies chosen, according to news coverage of the announcement, are the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, the City of Jackson, Mississippi, and Baton Rouge-East Baton Rouge Parish in Louisiana. Coverage describes the money as a combined pool for the four sites rather than $300 million for each one.

JSO said the funding will strengthen its forensic, investigative and technology capabilities and will also support partner law enforcement agencies across Northeast Florida. The Justice Department's strategy is data-driven, according to its press release as described by Action News Jax, and combines proactive enforcement, community intervention, technology, coordination among agencies and community engagement. How much of each Jacksonville will use has not been explained.

Sheriff T.K. Waters called the selection a "tremendous honor for Jacksonville" and described the investment as "generational," saying it will help JSO stay ahead of criminals. He said the partnership shows what local and federal partners can achieve with a shared mission, according to Action News Jax. He did not give a dollar figure in the statements Action News Jax reported.

What is still unknown

The key figures are not yet public. Jacksonville's dollar amount, the specific projects and the timeline for spending have not been released, according to JSO, which said it will announce them together with the Justice Department. Residents should treat any specific dollar figure reported before that announcement as unconfirmed.

Reporting from other sites shows how different the plans can be. In St. Louis, the police chief said the money would go toward officer recruitment, renovations to the Real-Time Crime Center, replacement cameras and license plate readers, and a new radio tower, according to coverage of that city's plan. Officials in Jackson had asked for $125 million over three years, according to local reporting, and the program is run as a cooperative agreement that gives the Justice Department a more active role in carrying it out.

The Justice Department's Office of Justice Programs will administer the awards and require quarterly performance reports from all four sites, according to news coverage of the announcement. The program is run as a cooperative agreement, which gives the Justice Department a more active role than a typical grant. That reporting requirement is one reason the details of Jacksonville's plan may come out in stages rather than all at once.

A separate push on pedestrian safety

JSO announced Oct. 27 that high-visibility enforcement details would begin Tuesday, Nov. 3, across Duval County to address bicyclist and pedestrian safety. The details run through the beginning of May 2027, according to the sheriff's office. The Institute of Police Technology and Management awarded the traffic enforcement contract in partnership with the Florida Department of Transportation, and the release does not state a dollar amount.

The numbers behind the effort are sobering. JSO said there have been 33 fatal crashes involving pedestrians or bicyclists so far in 2026, compared with 31 at the same point in 2025. News4JAX reported in early September that JSO counted 30 pedestrian deaths at that time, up from 21 at the same point the year before.

The two counts measure different things and were reported nearly two months apart, so they should not be added together or treated as the same series. Both point in the same direction, however, and both come from JSO. Readers comparing the two should check the date and the definition in each report.

What drivers and walkers should know

JSO's release describes the details as high-visibility enforcement, which means officers are meant to be seen on Duval County roads. Residents who live near busy corridors may notice more patrols through the winter. JSO's earlier contracts of this kind have combined education with warnings or citations, but the 2026 release does not spell out the mix. The city also has a Vision Zero Action Plan, unveiled in July 2025, that includes quick-build street projects and a "20 Is Plenty" program to lower speed limits from 30 mph to 20 mph in targeted areas, according to News4JAX.

Practical steps are simple. Drivers should stop for people in marked crosswalks, slow down near intersections and put phones away. People on foot should cross at marked crosswalks and signals when possible, and bicyclists should use lights after dark.

What to watch next

The next piece of news is the dollar figure for Jacksonville, which JSO says is coming. Updates will be posted on the sheriff's office news page at jaxsheriff.org. The sheriff's office has said the money is also meant to help partner agencies in Northeast Florida, so more detail on that is likely to follow.