Lt. Gov. Austin Davis Announces Availability of Nonprofit Security Grant Funds to Make Pennsylvania Communities Safer

Pittsburgh, PA - Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, who serves as chair of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), joined state leaders at the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh today to announce the availability of $10 million in funding for nonprofit organizations to protect the safety and security of their facilities.

With the passage of the 2024-25 budget, the Shapiro-Davis Administration secured twice the amount of funding provided through this program last year to support much-needed planning, training, equipment, and technology upgrades for places of worship, community centers and other nonprofit entities.

“Hate has absolutely no place in Pennsylvania,” Lt. Gov. Davis said. “No matter what you look like, who you love or how you worship, every Pennsylvanian deserves to be safe and feel safe in their community. With the additional $5 million investment that the Shapiro-Davis Administration secured in this year’s budget, even more nonprofit organizations will have the resources they need to keep their members and visitors safe from threats and acts of violence.”

This is the seventh cohort of the Nonprofit Security Grant Fund Program, which has provided $25 million in funding to more than 580 organizations since its inception. Based on reported data of the number of people who visit these facilities, is estimated that approximately four million Pennsylvanians have been impacted by this funding to date.

“As we continue to face unprecedented moments and acts of hatred and violence in this Commonwealth, it’s up to us as leaders to deliver safety our vulnerable communities can feel,” said state Sen. Jay Costa. “I am incredibly proud of the work we have done to establish and expand the Nonprofit Security Grant program, and I look forward to seeing these dollars go to good use protecting our neighbors where they gather, worship and create community.”

"This program was created in the aftermath of devastating tragedy, when 11 Jews in my district were murdered in their synagogues by a hateful gunman," said state Rep. Dan Frankel. "I'm deeply proud that then and every year since we came together to help restore a sense of safety – not just for Jews and not just in Pittsburgh, but for all of the crucial organizations that help support the rich diversity that we are so proud of in Pennsylvania."

The Nonprofit Security Grant Fund Program was part of Act 83 of 2019, which directs PCCD to administer grants to nonprofit organizations who primarily serve individuals, groups, or institutions that are included within a bias motivation category for single-bias hate crime incidents as identified by the FBI’s Hate Crime Statistics. Those that fall under this category include individuals, groups, or institutions targeted because of race/ethnicity/ancestry, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender-identity or gender biases.

Applicants are eligible for security enhancements projected to protect the safety and security of the users of a facility located in the Commonwealth that is owned or operated by the nonprofit. Applicants can find the application and information about the Program on the PCCD website. Grant awards can range from $5,000 to $150,000 for a variety of eligible items, including:

• Safety and security planning and training;
• Purchase of safety and security equipment and technology;
• Upgrades to existing structures that enhance safety and security; and
• Vulnerability and threat assessments.

The application period opens today and will close on Aug. 27. Applications will be reviewed by a Commission-established workgroup comprised of representatives of PCCD, the Pennsylvania State Police and the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security, with the awards announced early this fall.

Questions regarding the program and the application process should be forwarded to RA-CD-NPSEC-GRANT@pa.gov. For more information visit PCCD’s Nonprofit Security Grant Fund webpage.

The 2024-25 Shapiro-Davis budget also funds the following programs and initiatives through PCCD to make Pennsylvania communities safer:

• $45 million for community-based programs to reduce violence, including a $5 million increase for the successful Violence Intervention and Prevention (VIP) program, which supports a wide range of strategies focused on reducing community violence and relies on community groups that are most in tune with specific local needs.
• $11.5 million to create a first-ever statewide Building Opportunity through Out of School Time (BOOST) program, which will aim to reduce community violence by providing more afterschool opportunities for young people.