Texas Senate Bill 22: Rural Law Enforcement Grants

The Texas SB 22 rural law enforcement grants are a state program, administered by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, that sends money directly to sheriff’s offices, constable’s offices, and prosecutor’s offices in counties of 300,000 residents or fewer. The grants are codified at Texas Local Government Code Sections 130.911, 130.912, and 130.913, and each one requires the county to use the money first to meet statutory minimum salaries before spending on anything else.¹

Which Counties and Offices Qualify

Eligibility turns on population. A county counts as a “qualified county” if it has 300,000 residents or fewer according to the most recent federal decennial census, which right now means the 2020 count.¹

Sheriff’s offices and prosecutor’s offices in those counties qualify on the population test alone. Constables face a narrower rule: only constables elected to offices created on or before January 1, 2023, who primarily make motor vehicle stops as part of their regular duties, count as “qualified constables.”² That cutoff keeps counties from spinning up new constable precincts to chase grant dollars.

How Much Each Office Receives

Grant size scales with population. Sheriff’s office awards fall into three tiers per fiscal year:

Under 10,000 residents: $250,000
10,000 to under 50,000: $350,000
50,000 to 300,000: $500,000

Prosecutor’s office awards follow the same shape at lower amounts: $100,000, $175,000, and $275,000 across the same tiers. For prosecutors, the tier is set by the office’s jurisdictional population rather than total county population, which matters in districts covering more than one county.¹

Constable awards work differently. There is no lump sum tier. Instead, the county must put up at least 75 percent of what is needed to meet the minimum salary for each qualified constable, and SB 22 funds can cover the remaining 25 percent. A county may submit only one constable grant application per fiscal year.²

What the Money Has to Pay For

The statute sets a strict order of spending. Minimum salaries come first, and the law explicitly prohibits spending on anything else until those floors are fully met.³

Minimum Annual Salaries

For sheriff’s office grants, the floors are:

County sheriff: $75,000
Deputies who make motor vehicle stops in the routine performance of their duties: $45,000
Jailers responsible for prisoner safekeeping and jail security: $40,000

For constable’s office grants, each qualified constable must be paid at least $45,000 per year.¹

Allowed Uses After the Floors Are Met

Once every required salary is funded, a sheriff’s office can use remaining grant money to raise pay above the minimums, hire additional deputies or staff, and purchase vehicles, firearms, and safety equipment.¹ Safety equipment covers body armor, ballistic helmets and shields, body cameras, radio equipment, in-car camera systems, and medical gear. Vehicles must be law enforcement vehicles used for patrols, responding to calls, or transporting people in custody. Any grant money not used for an authorized purpose must be returned.³

The Supplement-Not-Supplant Rule

This is the provision that most often catches counties out. A county cannot reduce the amount of local funds it already provides to the sheriff’s office or constable’s office just because SB 22 money arrived.³² The grant has to add to the local budget, not replace local tax dollars.

In practical terms, a county already spending $400,000 on its sheriff’s office cannot drop its contribution to $200,000 and plug the gap with grant funds. The Comptroller monitors disbursements for exactly that pattern, and misused money has to be returned.

How and When to Apply

Applications go through the Texas Comptroller’s online grant portal. The statutory deadline is no later than 30 days after the first day of the county’s fiscal year, so the calendar varies from county to county.²

Before filing, pull together the financial data the Comptroller requires: current salary schedules for sheriffs, deputies, jailers, and constables; accurate staffing counts, including the number of full-time equivalent positions; and the county’s most recently adopted property tax rate.¹ Those figures let the state confirm the county is meeting its own funding obligations before layering grant dollars on top. After submission, the portal generates a confirmation number for tracking, and Comptroller staff review the application for statutory compliance before notifying the county of the award. Discrepancies between what the county reports and what the state already has on file slow everything down, so getting the numbers right the first time matters.

A Payroll Note on the Raises

Any salary increase paid with SB 22 money is ordinary taxable wages. The IRS treats supplemental wage payments the same as regular compensation, and the county must withhold federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare on the full amount.⁴ The gross salary floor set by the statute and the net cost to the county are not the same number, and payroll should budget accordingly.

1
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Rural Law Enforcement Grants Senate Bill 22
2
State of Texas. Texas Code Local Government Code 130.912 – Rural Constable’s Office Salary Assistance Grant Program
3
State of Texas. Texas Local Government Code LOC GOV’T 130.911
4
Internal Revenue Service. Publication 15 (Circular E), Employer’s Tax Guide