The City of Flint has received the second largest Department of Justice grant of any municipality within the state.
Second only to Detroit’s $3.3 million, the $411,348 grant awarded to Flint is one of 59 totaling $24.8 million total through the Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding program. With the average grant equaling less than $60,000, Flint’s $411,348 is significant.
“We are both thankful and honored that by awarding us such a substantial grant award, the Department of Justice recognized the amount of work being done in the City of Flint to protect against the spread of coronavirus,” City of Flint Police Chief Phil Hart said in a press release.
The Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding Program provides funding to assist eligible states, local units of government, and tribes in preventing, preparing for, and responding to the coronavirus.
Projects and purchases may include overtime, equipment (including law enforcement and medical personal protective equipment), hiring, supplies (such as gloves, masks, and hand sanitizer), training, travel expenses, and addressing the medical needs of inmates in state, local, and tribal prisons, jails, and detention centers.
Flint has been proactive in its efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19 since the pandemic hit, closing city hall to the public and recommending all local businesses, places of worship, and other gathering spaces voluntarily limit the size of their gatherings before Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s stay-home orders in late March.
Other local awards include grants to Flint Township for $71,917, Genesee County for $58,008, and Mt. Morris Township for $33,386.
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