Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced an increase in federal funding to enhance security at U.S. places of worship Sunday, The Associated Press (AP) reported.
Schumer said that the federal Nonprofit Security Grant Program will receive an additional $400 million, according to The AP. The boost in funding responds to growing concerns about threats to Jewish and Muslim communities, especially amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
The increased funding is designed to bolster security at synagogues, mosques and other religious institutions, enabling them to employ security personnel and install cameras and other protective technologies, the outlet reported. Schumer stressed the need for these places of worship to operate without concerns.
“We’re going to keep funding so that no synagogue or other religious institution is going to have to live in the fear that they now live with,” Schumer said, The AP reported.
The Nonprofit Security Grant Program distributed $305 million in 2023 to various nonprofits to help protect their facilities against potential attacks. The need for enhanced security was underscored by recent events in New York City, where three synagogues and the Brooklyn Museum received bomb threats via email last Saturday, AP reported. The threats prompted evacuations at two of the synagogues, though no explosives were found upon investigation.
Religious organizations interested in the new federal funds must submit their applications by May 21, according to The AP.