Maryland Senate Minority Leader J.B. Jennings proposed a bill on Friday that would allow the Republican Gov. Larry Hogan to declare a state of emergency in any Maryland city or community where there is a homicide rate of 3 killings per 100,000 residents in a 30-day period, the Baltimore Sun reported on Tuesday.

The newspaper has already tracked 52 reported homicides taking place in the Baltimore since the beginning of 2020. Census data shows the Maryland city has a population of around 600,000 in 2018.

A total of 348 homicides were reported in Baltimore last year, with many resulting from shootings and stabbings.

Speaking about his proposed bill, the Baltimore Sun reported Sen. Jennings saying: “Baltimore has asked us for help. We’re trying to help. We’re saying: ‘Hey, this is something we can do.’ Once we get these crime levels back down, we can pull these resources out.”

His office also told CBS Baltimore that a state of emergency could last for as long as 30 days and be eligible for renewal.

Under the proposed Maryland Senate emergency bill, which is backed by the minority leader and at least 14 other senators, Gov. Hogan would have the power to direct evacuations from any “stricken or threatened area” in the state, and “suspend the effect” of any statutes or regulations set out by state agencies or political subdivisions.

He would also be permitted to appoint special prosecutors to pursue criminal cases in the district or circuit courts, and “direct resources and personnel” from law enforcement or emergency services to communities where a state of emergency is underway.

“It is clear that Baltimore City, with its current personnel, is unable to halt the wave of violence, protect its citizens, investigate acts of criminal violence, arrest and bring arrested violent defendants to trial, or provide justice to its inhabitants,” the proposed bill’s preamble reads.

“The state of violence and murderous crimes in Baltimore City constitutes a State of Emergency.”

A spokeswoman for Gov. Hogan told the Baltimore Sun that it was “encouraging to see that some legislators are focused on addressing the violent crime crisis in Baltimore City,” adding that the Maryland leader believed it was “the most urgent issue facing our state.”

“The governor will consider any legislation that comes to his desk,” she added.

Newsweek has contacted Maryland Sen. Jennings and Gov. Hogan’s office for further comment. This article will be updated with any response.

The office of Baltimore City Mayor Bernard Young has also been contacted for comment.

Baltimore made national headlines in September last year after President Donald Trump slammed the city as a “rat and rodent infested mess” where nobody would want to live, adding that it had been “destroyed by decades of failed and corrupt rule.”

Addressing concerns about the city’s homicide rate in November, Mayor Young said his leadership could not be blamed for the crime wave.

“How can you fault leadership? This has been five years of 300-plus murders,” he said at a press conference.