Committee staff outlines governor's public‑safety budget amendments: SRO funding, corrections health costs, veterans centers and equipment grants

A staff member for the Senate Finance and Appropriations Public Safety Subcommittee provided a high‑level overview of the governor's proposed budget amendments related to public safety, listing targeted increases for school resource officers, firefighter equipment, corrections health care and veterans' care centers and describing operational items such as mobile classrooms and technology upgrades.

The staff presentation identified the largest items as $6.8 million for school resource officers (SROs) in FY2025 and $5 million for firefighter protective equipment grants. It also listed a $4.7 million operating request related to two new veterans' care centers (one in Virginia Beach and one in Fauquier County) that the department previously began funding with a $19.1 million appropriation.

For the Department of Corrections (DOC), staff said year‑over‑year inmate health‑care costs are rising, driven in part by specialty drug price increases and a rebound in off‑site clinical services that had declined during COVID. The governor's amendments include funding for expanded dental services provided by two…