Community Health and Safety Works Grant Program and Fund - Alterations
Summary
HB172 revises Maryland’s Community Health and Safety Works Grant Program to broaden the kinds of projects that may receive grants. The bill replaces several narrower project categories with a more flexible definition of eligible projects, including community or business district improvement projects, community-centered crime and violence intervention and prevention projects, and any other project the Secretary identifies as a recognized crime-prevention strategy addressing environmental, health, or safety concerns in commercial, public, or residential areas.
The bill also expands what counts as a community or business district improvement project. Eligible activities now explicitly include safety and beautification measures such as security cameras, license readers, lighting, landscaping, cleaning and groundskeeping, private security with a de-escalation focus, traffic calming, and climate-related mitigation such as reducing urban heat island effects. It also broadens the list of eligible applicants to include governmental units and institutions of higher education working with local neighborhood associations, in addition to tax-exempt nonprofits.
Impact
HB172 amends several provisions of the Housing and Community Development Article, primarily §§ 6-1301, 6-1304, and 6-1307, while repealing the prior §§ 6-1305 and 6-1306 that separately governed business district security projects and community-centered violence intervention projects. It removes fixed grant minimums and maximums, gives the Department of Housing and Community Development discretion to determine grant amounts, and allows the Community Health and Safety Works Grant Program Fund to be used not only for grants but also for the Department’s administrative and operating expenses related to the program. The bill takes effect July 1, 2025.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have broad support in the House, passing third reading by a wide margin of 116 yeas to 19 nays. The favorable committee report and final passage suggest general agreement with expanding and modernizing the grant program, especially for community safety, neighborhood improvement, and violence prevention efforts. The absence of committee transcript material limits insight into detailed debate, but the vote indicates the measure was not highly controversial overall.
Contention
The main points of potential contention are the bill’s expansion of eligible projects and applicants, and the removal of prior grant caps and specific application requirements for camera and license-reader projects. Supporters likely view these changes as increasing flexibility and allowing the Department to fund a wider range of crime-prevention and community-improvement strategies, including climate and public-health related interventions. Critics may be concerned about reduced statutory guardrails, broader administrative discretion, and the use of grant funds for departmental operating expenses rather than only direct project grants.