The US Department of Justice will announce up to four finalist cities next month to split $300 million in grant funding under the federal Model Cities policing initiative. The program targets municipalities with populations exceeding 100,000 residents and attaches strict conditions regarding immigration enforcement and public order policies.

The Model Cities Initiative offers the $300 million pool to between two and four selected municipalities. Grant funding under the program is structured to last for three years. Cities receiving these funds are required to comply with federal immigration enforcement requests as a condition of participation.

Recipients must also enact conservative policies on anti-homelessness rules. The grant requires municipalities to enforce prohibitions on open illicit drug use, urban camping, loitering, and squatting. Additionally, the grant requires standards that address individuals who are a danger to themselves or others and suffer from serious mental illness or substance use.

The framework calls for assisted outpatient treatment for people experiencing mental health problems that have led to homelessness. It repudiates the housing-first model for homelessness relief by requiring compliance with treatment to retain housing. Cities receiving MCI funding may be required to repay millions of dollars in the event of a surge in violent crime or civil unrest.

The initiative is funded by Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act was enacted on July 4, 2025. The Phase 1 application deadline for the Model Cities Initiative is September 1, 2026, by 11:59 p.m. ET.

MCI awards will be evaluated by senior political appointees in the Justice Department rather than through a peer review process. Grant guidelines require applicants to have documented buy-in and support from mayors, sheriff’s offices, city councils and county commissions. City governments can use MCI money to hire more police and fund substance abuse recovery programs, prisoner re-entry programs, facilities, training and other initiatives.

"Senior department leaders have made themselves available in a variety of formats to answer questions about how cities can submit the most competitive application possible," said a US Department of Justice spokesperson. "[The justice department] looks forward to reviewing applications from across the country that demonstrate how creative solutions and close teamwork between local and federal partners can achieve the same dramatic gains in public safety seen in Washington DC and Memphis, said a US Department of Justice spokesperson."

This is the Make America Safe Again mission in action," said a US Department of Justice spokesperson. The grant document cites Washington DC and Memphis, Tennessee as models to emulate for the MCI. National Guard troops are patrolling the streets in Washington DC and Memphis, Tennessee. Four officer-involved deaths have occurred in Memphis since the launch of its taskforce last September."

Steven Reed, Mayor of Montgomery, Alabama, stated he had seen the grant and passed on applying. "That’s not a model I’d be looking for," said Steven Reed. "Everybody wants a quick fix, and no one wants to invest in the root cause of the issue," said Steven Reed.

Karen Jarussi spoke to the city council of Billings, Montana. The Billings city council voted 9-1 against forwarding a grant application for the MCI. The city of San Bernardino, California, withdrew a vote on its agenda regarding the MCI after public outcry.

The US Department of Justice has disbursed more than $20 billion through the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services since 1994. The COPS office offered city governments about $700 million this fiscal year to supplement hiring, training and equipment. This represents a shift in federal funding priorities toward conditional grants tied to specific policy implementations.

Why It Matters

The initiative shifts federal funding priorities by tying $300 million in grants to specific policy mandates on immigration and homelessness rather than peer-reviewed merit. Cities risk financial repayment if violent crime surges, while the evaluation process moves from independent review to senior political appointees. This conditional framework has already prompted some municipalities to reject the funds due to concerns over the required enforcement models.