On March 28, 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the resumption of payments from the Equitable Sharing Program. The DOJ has already begun to process payments to state and local law enforcement through the equitable sharing program; however, there is a backlog of applications for payments dating back to December 21, 2015, when the DOJ suspended the program. The DOJ will distribute the deferred payments, as well as future payments, on a “first in, first out” basis.

However, it is still critically important that we take steps to prevent similar shutdowns from occurring in the future. We advise you to reach out to your members of the U.S. Congress to express your support for the asset forfeiture program and to convey its importance to state and local law enforcement. This effort remains critical. If you have not already done so, I urge you to visit IACP’s legislative action center and send your U.S. senator a letter of support for a proposal that would prevent future shutdowns of the Equitable Sharing Program.