RICHMOND, Texas – Hearings on Capitol Hill Tuesday are calling into question a federal program that gives used military surplus to law enforcement agencies across America, including dozens in the area.
The new scrutiny comes after some members of Congress said the program is leading to the militarization of police departments.
The Richmond Police Department has added a military vehicle called an MRAP.
It's not quite ready for use, but when it is Richmond police say the 18-ton truck built for the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will have a completely different use.
"We're not going to have machine guns mounted on it or anything like that," Richmond police Sgt. Lowell Neinast said. "Our main purpose for it was a natural disaster rescue vehicle."
Richmond is one of dozens of Texas law enforcement agencies that requested and received an MRAP through the federal military surplus program.
"Our funding is limited so any opportunity we have to get something like this is a great asset to our department," Neinast said.
A congressional report shows departments across the state have a total of 73 MRAPs while the Texas National Guard has only six.
At a Senate hearing Tuesday, members of Congress questioned the program in the wake of what many felt was the militarized response by police against protestors in Ferguson, Missouri. The hearing is just the first step in the federal review. Congress could vote to change the rules for providing equipment to local authorities.
Departments around the area say they hope the program continues and they'd like to receive more of the surplus in the future.