Safety Grant Award Means New Bulletproof Vests for Hiram PD

Submitted by City of Hiram

The City of Hiram announced it was awarded a Safety Grant Award check in the amount of $2,525 from the Georgia Municipal Association (GMA). These funds will be used by the city to purchase Bulletproof Vests.

Steve Durden, Deputy Director of Marketing, stated, “This program allows each city to stretch their budget dollars and provide a safer work environment for their employees.”

According to City Manager Robbie Rokovitz, “This is one of several grants that have been written for the City and the police department under the skilled and experienced writing abilities of Chief VandeZande.”

“We are very appreciative of this award that will not only reduce expenditures but also to purchase equipment that has proven to save the lives of public safety professionals,” continued Rokovitz.

The GMA Safety and Liability Management Grant program was introduced in 2000 to provide a financial incentive to assist members in improving their employee safety and general public liability loss control efforts through training and the purchase of equipment or services.

Since the inception of the program, over 130 cities have received grant money through the program, over 500 grants were approved totaling nearly $1.5 million to fund items such as bulletproof vests, training videos, confined space entry equipment, reflective safety vests, fire department turnout gear, and police department in-vehicle video systems. These grant funds have helped leverage the purchase of over $2.6 million in this type of equipment and training.

(Photo: City of Hiram)