Columbus - Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced Tuesday that more than 300 local law enforcement agencies are now participating in the Ohio Law Enforcement Body Armor Program.
The program, administered by the attorney general’s office since August 2018, is funded by the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) and awards grants totaling up to $40,000 to each agency.
“Law enforcement happens at the local level,” Yost said. “Seeing that these grants are being used in every corner of our state helps me rest easier at night knowing that our peace officers are better equipped to return home safely to their loved ones at the conclusion of each shift.”
A new interactive map on the attorney general’s website locates participating agencies and allows users to examine where the $2.7 million in grants are being used throughout the state. You can find that map by clicking here.
BWC and the attorney general’s office are finalizing an agreement to substantially expand the program. Funding remains available for law enforcement agencies interested in providing body armor to their staffs.
The 320 local agencies vary in size and are concentrated primarily in the metro areas surrounding Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Youngstown. Although a vast majority of the grants have gone to police departments, agencies such as the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District in New Philadelphia, the Lorain County Metropolitan Park District Rangers in Lorain and the Stark County Park District in Massillon have also received funding.
About 73% of the awarded grants (233) each total less than $10,000. Less than 9% of the grants exceed $20,000 each, and about one in five (18%) are between $10,000 and $20,000 each. Two local agencies (the Warren Police Department and the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department) have received the maximum total of $40,000.
Photo by: Ken Robinson / WTAM 1100
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