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Three local agencies get COVID funds

Three Washington County agencies will soon receive nearly $79,000 to cover COVID-19 expenses.

The Belpre Police Department, the Marietta College Police Department and Marietta Municipal Court will get their budgets in the next few days to see what exactly is funded.

Marietta College Police Chief Jim Weaver said he heard the amount he was receiving, but not much else. The college police department will receive about $9,973.

“We applied for several contactless thermometers, cases of disinfectant, a large quantity of hand sanitizer and an electrostatic sprayer,” he explained. “The sprayer is a sanitizing machine for use in the office and cruisers.”

He said the sprayer is portable and sanitizes the cruisers in a short amount of time, so the cars can be back out on the road.

“It could be used for years. It’s a very useful tool,” Weaver noted. The department’s grant runs through Feb. 28, 2021.

Belpre Police Chief Terry Williams said he was unsure when he would get the money from the state. He applied for the funding in April and the police department was granted $11,120. The grant runs through May 1, 2021.

“We’ll use it for face masks, gloves, eye protection, sanitizer and stuff,” he said. “I think a couple of laptop computers, too.”

Marietta Municipal Court will receive a grant for $58,194 that runs through June 30, 2021. Calls to Jason Hamilton, court administrator, were not returned Tuesday.

According to the governor’s press release, a total of nearly $16 million was awarded to Ohio’s Office of Criminal Justice Services for this program as part of the CARES Act. OCJS continues to process other grant applications they’ve already received and are still accepting new applications from agencies that have not yet requested funding.

Michele Newbanks can be reached at mnewbanks@mariettatimes.com.

At a glance:

• Washington County received about $79,000 from the state.

• The funding was part of the Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding Grant.

• About $2.1 million will be awarded to 65 criminal justice agencies around the state.

• The funding can be used for COVID-19 expenses, as well as technology upgrades.

Source: Office of Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine.

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