Maryland State Police budget rises; DLS flags personnel drivers and consent-decree changes

The Department of Legislative Services told the Public Safety and Administration Subcommittee that the Maryland Department of State Police’s fiscal 2026 allowance increases by $47,400,000 to $668,900,000, and that “about 92% of that growth can be attributed to personnel salary enhancements,” DLS analyst Madeline Miller said.

The budget increase is concentrated in personnel: DLS noted personnel costs represent about 81.8% of the department’s total expenditures and the Field Operations Bureau receives the largest program share. DLS highlighted several performance measures — including increases in Part 1 property crimes and an uptick in traffic-fatality rates — that frame the department’s resource requests.

Why it matters: the spending request and the department’s planned personnel changes come as Maryland confronts higher property-crime counts and a post-pandemic rise in traffic fatalities, while the department is also implementing changes tied to a U.S. Department of Justice consent decree and Board of Public Works actions that affect recruiting tests and monetary awards.

DLS presentation and key figures

“Between fiscal 25 and 26 the department’s budget increases by 47,400,000 to 668,900,000.0,” Madeline Miller said. DLS exhibits cited a 16.6% rise in Part 1 offenses per 100,000 residents between calendar 2022 and 2023, and described traffic-fatality trends that left Maryland’s vehicle‑miles‑traveled below 2019 levels while the fatality rate rose. DLS also reported that the Office of the State Fire Marshal’s inspections increased by about 74.7% from 2020 to 2024 and that fire‑related deaths rose to 84 in 2023.

Budget details and special funds

DLS identified multiple budget adjustments: two cost-containment actions approved by the Board of Public Works in July 2024 that reduced general‑fund support for the computer forensics laboratory and shifted three emergency dispatcher positions to a special fund (the Maryland Emergency Medical Systems Operations Fund, or MEMSOF). DLS described proposed deficiency actions that would add roughly $6.4 million to field operations for insurance and reimbursable overtime, and several swaps exchanging general funds for special funds tied to MEMSOF and commercial vehicle enforcement.

DLS also noted a $1.5…