FILE-A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster recovery center in Pasadena, California, US, on Jan. 17, 2025. (Jill Connelly/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
State emergency management officials tasked with preparing for natural disasters and responding to emergencies think serious cuts to federal security grants and restrictions on money allocated for readiness and funding delays are posing a risk to their ability to respond to a crisis.
The reduction in funds for some states has impacted emergency management agencies, hiring more staff and purchasing vital equipment which aids in preparedness and responses to disasters.
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In a statement obtained by the Associated Press, the Department of Homeland Security said the new FEMA requirements were necessary because of "recent population shifts" and that changes to security grants were made "to be responsive to new and urgent threats facing our nation."
FEMA cuts funding for states
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According to the AP, the Trump administration has suspended a $3.6 billion FEMA disaster resilience program, cut the FEMA workforce, and disrupted routine training.
In September, FEMA slashed some states’ allocations from other funding sources. According to the Associated Press, the $1 billion Homeland Security Grant Program is supposed to be based on assessed risks, and states pass most of the money to police and fire departments.
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New York received $100 million less than it expected, a 79% reduction, while Illinois saw a 69% reduction. Meanwhile, some territories received unexpected windfalls, including the U.S. Virgin Islands, which got more than twice its expected allocation.
On Sept 29, FEMA, a part of the Department of Homeland Security, divided a $320 million Emergency Management Performance Grant among states, the Associated Press reported.
However, the next day, FEMA explained to the AP that the funding was on hold until state officials provided new population counts. The amount of money distributed to the states is based on U.S. census population data.
In its statement from DHS, obtained by the AP, said FEMA needs to be certain of its funding levels before awarding grant money, and that includes updates to a state's population due to deportations.
The AP noted that a federal judge last week ordered the Department of Homeland Security to stop connecting grants to immigration enforcement.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by the Associated Press, which obtained a statement from the Department of Homeland Security related to the FEMA funding. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.