Texas Comptroller Delivers Grants To Boost Smaller Communities

(AUSTIN)—Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar today said his office delivered nearly $126 million in financial assistance to rural law enforcement and prosecutor offices as part of a grant program addressing challenges faced by these groups in counties with small populations.

“About 500 rural law enforcement and prosecutor offices applied to our office for this critical grant money, which allows sheriffs, constables, and district and county attorneys to raise salaries and, in some cases, make new hires,” Hegar said. “Bigger cities frequently have the financial capacity to offer enhanced incentives, while smaller law enforcement agencies typically must do the same work with considerably smaller budgets. These grants will help the entities that go above and beyond daily to ensure Texans in every corner of our great state feel safe and secure in their neighborhoods and communities.”

Enacted by Senate Bill 22 during the 88th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, the program allows qualified counties, on behalf of sheriffs and constables, and prosecutor offices to apply for grants up to 30 days after the start of their fiscal year. However, to jump-start the program in its 2024 inaugural year, the Comptroller’s office allowed all eligible counties to apply for grants from Jan. 1-31, regardless of their fiscal year start date.

The Legislature appropriated $330 million for the 2024-25 biennium to fund the grant program. The first-year application period saw 502 grant applications.

“These brave men and women embody the grit, determination, and spirit that built our state and which are hallmarks of these rural communities,” Hegar said. “As a sixth-generation Texan who grew up farming land in a rural community that relied on law enforcement personnel to wear a lot of different hats, I understand the pressures that these folks feel. It is a privilege to be able to support them through this program, and I’m grateful to the Legislature for trusting me with this.”

The grant program allows the Comptroller’s office to administer the following to counties with populations of less than 300,000 people:

• The Rural Sheriff’s Department Salary Assistance Grant grants ranged between $250,000 and $500,000. The grant funding must be used to provide specified minimum salaries, give salary increases, hire additional deputies or staff, or purchase safety equipment for the sheriff’s department.
• The Rural Constable’s Office Salary Assistance Grant provides financial assistance to the constable’s offices. The grant funding must provide a minimum salary of $45,000 to an elected constable who makes motor vehicle stops in the routine performance of the constable’s duties.
• The Rural Prosecutor’s Office Salary Assistance Grant awards grants between $100,000 and $275,000. The grant funding must be used to increase the salaries of assistant attorneys, investigators, and victim assistance coordinators or to hire additional staff.

Visit the Comptroller’s website for more information on the grant program.