(a) (1) In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.
(2) “Cadet Program” means the Law Enforcement Cadet Apprenticeship Program.
(3) “Law enforcement agency” means the police department of a county, municipal corporation, or university in the State.
(b) There is a Law Enforcement Cadet Apprenticeship Program in the Department.
(c) The purposes of the Cadet Program are to:
(1) provide young individuals opportunities to begin a career in law enforcement;
(2) foster positive relationships between the public, particularly young individuals, and law enforcement agencies;
(3) develop a cohort of individuals qualified to join a law enforcement agency;
(4) encourage law enforcement agencies to hire apprentices; and
(5) help law enforcement agencies offset additional costs, if any, associated with hiring apprentices.
(d) (1) The Department shall:
(i) administer the Cadet Program; and
(ii) award grants under the Cadet Program on a competitive basis to law enforcement agencies that meet the requirements under paragraph (2) of this subsection.
(2) A law enforcement agency is eligible to receive a grant if the law enforcement agency employs at least one apprentice who:
(i) has been employed by the agency for at least 7 months;
(ii) is enrolled in the first year of an apprenticeship program registered with the Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Council under § 11–405(b) of this title; and
(iii) lives in a zip code in which at least 10% of the population is below the poverty level as established by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, in the most recently released data.
(e) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the amount of a grant awarded under the Cadet Program:
(i) shall be based on the number of apprentices who meet the description in subsection (d)(2)(i) through (iii) of this section who are employed by the eligible law enforcement agency; and
(ii) may not exceed $2,000 for each apprentice who meets the description in subsection (d)(2)(i) through (iii) of this section who is employed by the eligible law enforcement agency.
(2) The amount of a grant awarded to an eligible university law enforcement agency may not exceed $1,000 for each apprentice who meets the description in subsection (d)(2)(i) through (iii) of this section who is employed by the eligible university law enforcement agency.
(f) For fiscal year 2021 and each fiscal year thereafter, the Governor shall include in the State budget an appropriation of at least $750,000 for the Cadet Program to:
(1) provide grants to eligible law enforcement agencies; and
(2) cover the administrative costs of operating the Cadet Program.
(g) The Department shall adopt regulations necessary to carry out this section, including regulations to:
(1) develop requirements for grant applications;
(2) develop a process for reviewing grant applications and awarding grants to eligible law enforcement agencies; and
(3) determine the maximum amount that an eligible law enforcement agency may be awarded under the Cadet Program each fiscal year.