RENO — The Reno City Council accepted a $245,519 Justice Assistance Grant that will be shared by the Reno Police Department, the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office and the Sparks Police Department for law enforcement equipment and training.

The federal grant was awarded by the U. S. Department of Justice and is good through Sept. 20, 2013. The grant does not require a match from local government and helps to offset law enforcement costs that would otherwise come from local government budgets.

The Reno Police Department and the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office will each receive about 40 percent of the grant funding. The Sparks Police Department will receive about 20 percent. The Reno Police Department is the fiscal agent for and administers the Justice Assistance Grants under an existing agreement between the local law enforcement agencies.

The grant funding is awarded under a formula calculated annually by the Bureau of Justice Assistance based on Universal Crime Reporting information.

The grant program has provided support for a wide range of justice programs for local law enforcement agencies in the past for such areas as gang tracking and enforcement and other community-based projects, as well as purchase of safety equipment, electronic equipment overtime and personnel costs.