Boston Council Panel Reviews $11.5 Million in Police Grants Before FIFA World Cup

BOSTON — April 13, 2026 — Boston City Council committee examines $11.5 million in police grants ahead of FIFA World Cup summer. The Committee on Public Safety and Criminal Justice, chaired by Councillor Henry Santana, heard testimony Monday on four dockets, headlined by a $10,925,140.07 Counter Unmanned Aircraft Systems grant — the first of its kind nationally, available only to FIFA World Cup host cities — that would fund a mobile, multi-layered drone detection and mitigation platform for the Boston Police Department, with roughly $10 million of the total directed at equipment. Superintendent Lynita Cullinane acknowledged the city currently has "a vulnerability to some extent" in drone detection, noting BPD's existing technology covers only one manufacturer's drones. A separate $577,500 Port Security Grant would replace a 25-year-old harbor patrol boat and re-engine two aging vessels; a $150,327.96 VAWA grant funds one of the department's six domestic violence advocates, with Lieutenant Detective Nicole LaPointe noting the caseload for six advocates is "overwhelming." Councillor Benjamin J. Weber raised unresolved questions about whether the expanded drone technology triggers a new Surveillance Technology Ordinance review, and Councillor Ruthzee Louijeune requested copies of the grant application and federal information-sharing implementation plan.