Wayne County committee approves Operation Stonegarden grant agreement

The Wayne County Committee on Public Safety, Judiciary and Homeland Security approved a grant agreement with the Michigan State Police Emergency Management and Homeland Security Division to accept FY2023 Operation Stonegarden funds to reimburse overtime and fuel costs for local police departments that patrol areas near the U.S.–Canada border.

The grant will be used for overtime hours and fuel expenses for participating local law enforcement agencies. “This grant, the Operation Stonegarden, is to cover the overtime hour for localities, police officer, and police department, that are bordering Canada. So this help defending our borders, patrolling it, and, avoid any trafficking or any terrorism,” said Ahmad Nasser, finance manager for Wayne County Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

Commissioner Wilson moved approval of the grant agreement with support from Commissioner Clemente; the committee voted to carry the motion. The meeting record shows the motion for this item was bundled with a second grant application on the consent vote and the chair announced “motion carried.” The committee did not provide a roll-call tally in the public record for this meeting.

Nasser said the grant performance period is three years and that funds for overtime and fuel must be expended during the performance window, with an expenditure deadline described in the packet as up to July 30 or Aug. 1, 2026. He said Wayne County is currently closing out prior grant funds from the 2022 fiscal-year award and has about $16,000–$17,000 remaining from that grant to spend through Dec. 31 of the current year.

There was some confusion in the packet about how many local jurisdictions participate. Nasser said 13 townships and cities that border Canada participate, plus two additional communities that patrol the I‑75 corridor, which he said makes 15 participating communities; the meeting packet indicated 16 jurisdictions including Wayne County and Detroit. Planner Brian Herman, Wayne County Homeland Security, said the sheriff’s office and the city of Detroit receive larger allocations because of the volume and size of territory they cover, while the remaining jurisdictions receive equal allocations. “The sheriff and the city of Detroit, based on their sheer volume and the amount of territory they cover get a slightly larger portion, and then the rest of the dollars are split up evenly amongst the communities,” Herman said.

Nasser said an operation order accompanying the grant specifies the amount each participating community may spend and that jurisdictions submit overtime and expense records for reimbursement.

Public-comment speakers did not raise objections to the grant approval during the meeting. The committee’s approval allows the county to accept the grant and make the program available to participating jurisdictions once administrative steps are complete.

The committee moved to the next agenda items after the vote and adjourned at the end of the meeting.