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Laurel celebrated being the Capital for a Day on Monday, and with it came the announcement that it was receiving enough federal funding to hire three additional city officers and state funding to purchase new police equipment.

Launched by Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) in 2007, Capital for a Day is a monthly program that brings state officials to different Maryland municipalities to discuss challenges with local officials and business owners.

At a morning appearance with Laurel Police Chief David Crawford and other local law enforcement, the governor announced $726,000 in federal funding would go toward the salaries of three new full-time Laurel police officers over a period of three years. He said the state would assist the federal effort by providing up to $30,000 for equipment that the grant does not cover, such as radios, bullet-proof vests and computers.

O'Malley praised Prince George's County's success in reducing crime and stressed the importance of collaboration among police agencies.

"In the law enforcement fight, the battle's really the same: to make sure all the citizens who are dedicated to making our state and our neighborhoods within our state safer are actually sharing information," he said.

After the morning meeting, O'Malley and his staff walked along Main Street and met with local business owners. Robert Mignon, president of the Laurel Board of Trade and owner of a downtown printing company, said the discussions were beneficial.

"We had a little dialogue about some of the things ... that are affecting businesses in terms of decreased sales," he said. Mignon also suggested a program to O'Malley that would give unemployed individuals a chance to help develop small businesses on a volunteer basis. The governor was receptive to the idea, Mignon said.

While O'Malley talked with business owners, about 30 members of his cabinet met with city and county officials who oversee transportation, development and social services. The group reconvened at about 12:30 p.m., and cabinet members gave O'Malley an overview of what they had discussed.

The meeting also included a dialogue between the governor and Laurel Mayor Craig A. Moe, Prince George's County Councilman Thomas Dernoga (D-Dist. 1) of Laurel and state Sen. James C. Rosapepe (D-Dist. 21) about everything from the concentration of group homes in the county to the frequency of MARC commuter train service. About 75 people attended the meeting.

Rosapepe, whose district includes parts of Prince George's and Anne Arundel counties, said O'Malley's visit was a sign of his dedication to the Laurel area.

"He comes to Laurel a lot, and he really cares about these issues," Rosapepe said of the governor. "It's very encouraging."