CAMPBELL COUNTY NEWS DESK · VIRGINIA
Campbell County approved $14,127 for Second Saint Paul Baptist Church security
A March 3, 2026 county vote funded a surveillance system through Virginia’s Combating Hate Crimes Grant Program. The records establish the appropriation and intended purchase; installation has not been independently confirmed.
March 3, 2026 appropriation verified; purchase and installation not independently confirmed.
What the Board of Supervisors approved
Campbell County’s Board of Supervisors approved $14,127 for a surveillance system at Second Saint Paul Baptist Church on March 3, 2026. The official meeting minutes identify the Sheriff’s Office as the recipient of the state grant and place the appropriation in the General Fund’s Combating Hate Crimes Grant category.
The action increased the Law Enforcement Equipment appropriation and the corresponding grant-revenue line by the same amount. It was part of the consent agenda approved on Supervisor Justin Carwile’s motion. All seven supervisors voted in favor, with no members absent.
The vote authorizes spending against the state award. It does not identify a vendor or establish a completion date.
The request identifies a system, not a completed installation
The supporting March 3 agenda packet contains the February 17, 2026 supplemental-appropriation request, numbered 20260303-16. It describes the award as money to purchase a surveillance system for the church. The request names Sheriff Whit Clark and County Administrator Frank Rogers.
The request and the subsequent vote describe the same project. Neither document reviewed for this report is a paid invoice, vendor completion statement, delivery receipt or installation acceptance record. They therefore support the amount and intended use of the funding without establishing when a system was purchased, installed or placed in service.
Why the state program covers church security
The Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services describes its FY2026 Combating Hate Crimes Grant Program as a competitive program for local governments working with eligible nonprofit institutions. It covers organizations that have been targeted or are at risk of being targeted. Its stated purpose includes reducing the risk of violence motivated by religious conviction and other listed characteristics.
That eligibility distinction matters here. A grant under this program does not, by itself, establish a past hate crime at Second Saint Paul Baptist Church. The county appropriation entry does not identify an incident, suspect or criminal case, and this report makes no such claim.
The state’s FY2026 grant guidelines include security and monitoring equipment among eligible projects. They require a connection to protecting identified partners at risk; general crime-prevention purchases without a direct connection to hate crimes are outside the program’s stated funding scope. The guidelines do not require a local match.
The funding period and the remaining evidence
The county minutes list the grant period as July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. That period has ended as of this report’s October 17, 2026 review. The date range identifies the award’s funding window; it does not establish the installation date.
The DCJS guidelines describe reimbursement based on paid invoices for approved expenses or permitted advance drawdowns for expected expenses. They also require prior approval of budget changes and exclude transactions outside the grant period. Those are program rules, not a finding about Campbell’s compliance.
A fuller account of the project would require the relevant purchase and payment records, confirmation of completed installation, and a final expenditure or closeout record. Those materials would show whether the amount authorized was fully spent and whether the stated purchase was completed. The absence of those documents from this review is not evidence that the project failed or that funds were misused.
Where residents can verify the record
The Campbell County Sheriff’s Office page publishes its public-records contact and office number, 434-332-9580. A request about this award can identify the program, church, amount and appropriation-request number above so staff can locate the relevant financial records.
For the elected board and other public offices, use our Campbell County government and Republican resources directory. The official meeting minutes remain the source for the board’s action.