Maryland
Baltimore City, County receive part of multi-million funding to fight hate crimes, support police
BALTIMORE — Several million dollars in funding has been made available to address hate crimes and enhance police recruitment in Maryland, the office of Gov. Wes Moore announced on Thursday.
The funding consists of $5.3 million that will go toward nonprofit organizations, provided through the Protecting Against Hate Crimes program, according to state officials.
A breakdown of the funding shows that Montgomery County will receive $1,087,700, which is the most amount of the hate crime grant money. Meanwhile, Baltimore County is slated to receive $924,155 in grant funding and Baltimore City stands to receive $887,175, according to a funding breakdown provided by the governor’s office.
The FBI defines hate crimes as criminal acts motivated by the offender’s bias against characteristics like race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity.
Additionally, $1.3 million was provided through a Police Recruitment and Retention grant for supporting the efforts of local law enforcement agencies to recruit and retain police officers, state officials said.
That pot of money will be used for hiring bonuses, retention incentives, tuition reimbursement and health incentives, according to state officials.
Collectively, the $6.3 million in funding aims to tackle Maryland’s public safety issues. It supports Moore’s plan to beef up the law-enforcement community; build stronger, more vibrant communities; coordinate across all aspects of government; and invest in Maryland’s youth, state officials said.
Montgomery County is poised to receive the most amount of the police recruitment and retention funding, too, according to a funding breakdown provided by the governor’s office.
The breakdown shows that Montgomery County will receive $1,036,915. It is followed by Baltimore City, which is slated to receive $979,775, and Baltimore County, which is projected to receive $979,775, per the funding breakdown.