NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP) — Newtown, Connecticut, is receiving a $7.1 million federal grant to provide new mental health services, including long-term counseling, to families, law enforcement, first responders and others affected by the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Members of Connecticut’s congressional delegation announced the grant Tuesday from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crime. Some money also will go toward school safety efforts.

Twenty first-graders and six adults were killed at the school in December 2012 by a gunman who committed suicide.

Rep. Elizabeth Esty, whose district includes Newtown, says the community deserves “sustained counseling.”

Last year, Newtown received a $1.5 million grant from the same office. Also, the Newtown Public Schools District received $3.2 million through a U.S. Department of Education program.

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