In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. “Adjusted assessed valuation of real property” means the sum of: 100% of the assessed valuation of the operating real property of public utilities; 40% of the assessed valuation of all other real property for State purposes, as reported by the Department of Assessments and Taxation as of July 1 of the second fiscal year preceding the fiscal year for which the calculation of State aid is to be made; and 20% of new property assessed between July 1 and December 31 of the second preceding fiscal year. “Aggregate expenditures for police protection” means the sum of expenditures for police protection of a county and of every qualifying municipality in the county. “County” does not include Baltimore City. “Executive Director” means the Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy. “Expenditures for police protection” means expenses for the fiscal year immediately preceding the fiscal year for which the calculation of State aid under this subtitle is to be made for: salaries, wages, and other operating expenses for police protection; capital outlays from current operating funds for police protection; debt service identifiable for police protection; officers of a sheriff’s office to the extent that the officers perform police protection functions; and traffic control, park police, and a share of the cost of a central alarm system proportionate to its police use. “Expenditures for police protection” does not include expenses for collecting from or servicing parking meters or constructing or operating local correctional facilities. “Fund” means the State Aid for Police Protection Fund. “Municipality” means an incorporated city or town. “Municipality” does not include Baltimore City. “Net taxable income” means the taxable income of individuals under Title 10 of the Tax – General Article, as certified by the Comptroller for the third completed calendar year preceding the fiscal year for which the calculation of State aid is to be made. “Qualified police officer” means a police officer that the Executive Director determines to be qualified under § 4–504(d) of this subtitle. “Qualifying municipality” means a municipality that: has expenditures for police protection that exceed $5,000; and employs at least one full–time qualified police officer; or has expenditures for police protection that exceed $80,000; and employs at least two part–time qualified police officers from a county police department or county sheriff’s department. “Real property” means all property classified as real property under § 8–101(b) of the Tax – Property Article. “Sworn officer” means: a law enforcement officer certified by the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission; or a full–time probationary employee of a local government who: is hired to attend a police training academy to become a certified law enforcement officer; and is in training or is functioning as a law enforcement officer pending training. “Wealth base” means the sum of the adjusted assessed valuation of real property and net taxable income.

Nothing in this subtitle may be construed as requiring a county or qualifying municipality to spend more for police protection than the greater of: the actual expenditures for police protection, not including capital expenditures; or the sum of: the amount received in State aid under this subtitle; and local funds equal to the percentage of local wealth used in calculating the State share in basic expenditures under § 4–506(b) of this subtitle.

There is a State Aid for Police Protection Fund. The Fund provides a continuing grant from the General Fund of the State that shall be used exclusively to provide adequate police protection in the counties and qualifying municipalities through the sharing of costs on an equitable basis within certain limits related to population factors.

The Executive Director shall administer the Fund. The Executive Director shall: certify to the Comptroller, counties, and qualifying municipalities the amount of payments under this subtitle to the counties and qualifying municipalities; and adopt regulations and require reports that are necessary to certify the amounts. In administering the Fund, the Executive Director shall: make a continuing effort to establish standards of police protection adequate to the various local situations; and subject to § 2–1257 of the State Government Article, report periodically to the General Assembly on progress in establishing and meeting those standards, including the payment amounts certified under subsection (b) of this section and any other relevant fiscal information. The Executive Director shall apply the minimum standards determined by the Police Training and Standards Commission under Title 3, Subtitle 2 of this article to determine whether police officers are qualified. The Police Training and Standards Commission shall print and distribute to all municipalities its regulations that set forth the minimum standards for police qualifications. If a municipality fails to meet the minimum standards for police qualifications for 2 successive years, the Executive Director shall withhold from the municipality payments that would otherwise be payable the second year. Any payment withheld for noncompliance is forfeited. A municipality may not make a claim for the withheld payment.

For population and density determinations under this subtitle: population numbers for a county shall be those estimated by the Maryland Department of Health, as of July 1 of each year; and the percentage of population residing in municipalities shall be determined from time to time by the most recently published federal decennial census data.

Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection and subject to § 4–507 of this subtitle and the limitations and requirements provided in this subtitle, each fiscal year the State shall pay to each county and each qualifying municipality, in the manner provided in this subtitle, an amount determined as provided in this section. Notwithstanding any other provision of this subtitle, for each of fiscal years 2015 and 2016, the total amount of the grants provided under this subtitle shall be $67,277,067. Notwithstanding any other provision of this subtitle, for fiscal year 2018, the total amount of the grants provided under this subtitle shall be $73,714,998 and each county and each qualifying municipality shall receive the same State funding that the county or qualifying municipality received in fiscal year 2017. If the aggregate expenditures for police protection in a county equal or exceed $6.00 per person, the State shall pay to the county the amount by which $6.00 per person exceeds 0.09% of the wealth base of the county. If the aggregate expenditures for police protection in a county are less than $6.00 per person, the State shall pay to the county the amount by which aggregate expenditures for police protection exceed the amount obtained by multiplying 0.09% of the wealth base of the county times a fraction: the numerator of which is the aggregate expenditures for police protection; and the denominator of which is $6.00 per person. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, in addition to the amount, if any, payable under subsection (b) of this section, the State shall pay to each county 25% of the amount by which aggregate expenditures for police protection in the county exceed $6.00 per person. For a county with a population density of less than 100 per square mile and in which less than 30% of the total population resides in a municipality, the State shall make no payment under this subsection. For a county with a population density of at least 100 but less than 500 per square mile, and for a county with a population density of less than 100 per square mile and in which at least 30% of the total population resides in a municipality, payment under this subsection may not exceed $3.50 per person. For a county with a population density of at least 500 but less than 900 per square mile, payment under this subsection may not exceed $7.50 per person. For a county with a population density of at least 900 but less than 1,100 per square mile, payment under this subsection may not exceed $8.00 per person. For a county with a population density of at least 1,100 but less than 1,300 per square mile, payment under this subsection may not exceed $9.25 per person. For a county with a population density of at least 1,300 but less than 8,000 per square mile, payment under this subsection shall be: 25% of the amount by which aggregate expenditures for police protection in the county exceed $6.00 per person but do not exceed $36.00 per person; and 50% of the amount by which aggregate expenditures for police protection in the county exceed $36.00 per person but do not exceed $45.50 per person. For a county with a population density of at least 8,000 per square mile, payment under this subsection shall be: 25% of the amount by which aggregate expenditures for police protection in the county exceed $6.00 per person but do not exceed $36.00 per person; and 50% of the amount by which aggregate expenditures for police protection in the county exceed $36.00 per person but do not exceed $101.50 per person. The State shall pay to each county the amount by which $2.50 per person exceeds the total payments determined under subsections (b) and (c) of this section. A county for which the population estimate is less than the population estimated for the first year of the grant may not receive in any year a smaller amount of State aid for police protection than it received in any previous year if it has not reduced the level of expenditures for police protection which entitled it to the amount of the previous year’s grant. In addition to the payments made under subsections (b), (c), and (d) of this section, the State shall pay to each county with a population density of less than 500 per square mile, $2.00 per person. In addition to the payments made under subsections (b) through (e) of this section, the State shall pay: to each county, $2.50 per person, subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection; to Baltimore City, $0.50 per person; and to each county that borders the District of Columbia, in addition to the amount required under item (i) of this paragraph, $0.50 per person living in the county within 1 mile of the border between the State and the District of Columbia. The State shall allocate the supplemental grant on a per person basis among the county and the qualifying municipalities in that county and distribute the resulting allocation to each county and qualifying municipality. Each fiscal year, the State shall pay to each county an additional grant equal to the greater of: 10% of the total of the payments determined under subsections (b) through (e) of this section; or an amount not to exceed $1 per person. The State shall pay each county the amount by which the grant paid to the county in fiscal year 1984 exceeds the total payments determined under subsections (b) through (g) of this section. Each fiscal year, the State shall pay to each qualifying municipality, in addition to the payments made under subsections (b) through (h) of this section, $1,950 for each sworn officer actually employed on a full–time basis by the qualifying municipality, as determined by the Executive Director. The payment made to each county under subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), (g), and (h) of this section shall be allocated to each county and qualifying municipality by multiplying the total payment by a fraction: the numerator of which equals the expenditures for police protection of the county or the qualifying municipality; and the denominator of which equals the aggregate expenditures for police protection.

In this section the following words have the meanings indicated. “Crime assessment” means an amount obtained for each county or Baltimore City by multiplying the percent of total Part I crimes in the State that were committed in the county or Baltimore City by 10% of the costs for the crime laboratory of the State Police as provided in the State budget for the fiscal year of the assessment. “Part I crimes” means the crimes reported by the State Police as Part I crimes in the annual uniform crime report for the second completed calendar year preceding the fiscal year of the crime assessment. “Wealth assessment” means an amount obtained for each county or Baltimore City by multiplying the percent of the total wealth base of the State that is attributable to the wealth base of the county or Baltimore City by 20% of the costs for the crime laboratory of the State Police as provided in the State budget for the fiscal year of the assessment. For each fiscal year, the amount determined under § 4–506 of this subtitle for each county or Baltimore City shall be reduced by the sum of the crime assessment and the wealth assessment for the county or Baltimore City.

The State Treasurer shall make the payments required under this subtitle to each county and qualifying municipality: on warrants of the Comptroller; at the end of each quarter of each fiscal year; and in approximately equal amounts for each quarter to the appropriate county or qualifying municipality.

If the Executive Director finds that a county is not complying with § 4–502 of this subtitle, the Executive Director shall notify the county or qualifying municipality of the noncompliance. If a county or qualifying municipality disputes the finding in the notice issued under subsection (a) of this section within 30 days of the issuance of the notice, the dispute shall be promptly referred to the Secretary of Budget and Management, who shall make a final determination. On receipt of certification of noncompliance by the Executive Director or the Secretary of Budget and Management, the Comptroller shall suspend, until notification of compliance is received, payment of any funds due the county or qualifying municipality for the current fiscal year, under § 4–506 of this subtitle, to the extent that the State’s aid due the county or qualifying municipality in the current fiscal year under § 4–506 of this subtitle exceeds the amount that the county or qualifying municipality received in the prior fiscal year.

In this section, “immigration enforcement agreement” has the meaning stated in § 5–104.1 of the Criminal Procedure Article. If the Executive Director finds that a county or qualifying municipality is not complying with State law related to immigration enforcement agreements, the Executive Director shall notify the county or qualifying municipality of the noncompliance. If a county or qualifying municipality disputes the finding in the notice issued under subsection (b) of this section within 30 days after the issuance of the notice, the dispute shall be promptly referred to the Secretary of Budget and Management, who shall make a final determination. On receipt of certification of noncompliance by the Executive Director or the Secretary of Budget and Management, the Comptroller shall suspend, until notification of compliance is received, payment of: any funds due the county or qualifying municipality for the current fiscal year under § 4–506 of this subtitle; and any enhanced or discretionary funding for police protection due the county or qualifying municipality for the current fiscal year.