FEMA withholds terror funds unless states change voting rules
The Trump administration will withhold 20% of FEMA antiterrorism grants from states that do not adopt new federal election security rules, tying more than $1 billion in Homeland Security Grant Program funding to paper ballots, citizenship checks, and mandatory audits. The policy escalates federal pressure on voting procedures months before the 2026 midterms.
FEMA announced the fiscal year 2026 grant notice on June 24, according to The New York Times. States and high-risk urban areas must apply by July 24. The conditions do not apply to separate federal disaster aid.
Key Takeaways
- FEMA will hold back 20% of Homeland Security Grant Program awards until the Department of Homeland Security verifies states meet new election security mandates.
- Requirements include transitioning to hand-marked paper ballots, auditing at least 5% of ballots after elections, and verifying voter and poll-worker citizenship through the SAVE database within 120 days of an award.
- The grants fund terrorism prevention, cybersecurity, border security, and election protection—totaling more than $1 billion annually.
- Legal experts and critics say the executive branch lacks constitutional authority to dictate state-run elections, and prior court rulings have blocked similar funding conditions.
- Major urban areas such as New York City could lose tens of millions of dollars if they refuse to comply.
What Election Security Rules Must States Follow?
Under FEMA's Election Security National Priority Area requirements, recipients must submit plans and timelines to move away from voting systems that count ballots using bar codes or QR codes and toward hand-marked paper ballots, the Times and Fox News report.
States must conduct manual audits of at least 5% of ballots after each federal election. They must also reconcile the number of voters who participated with the number of ballots cast. Within 120 days of receiving a grant, jurisdictions must run voter rolls through the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database and verify citizenship of poll workers and election vendors.
FEMA also requires at least 3% of certain grant funds be spent on election security. The agency says that 3% set-aside and the 20% holdback are separate and do not offset each other.
Why Does Linking Antiterror Funds to Voting Matter?
The Homeland Security Grant Program helps states and local governments coordinate law enforcement, harden critical infrastructure—including cybersecurity—and protect crowded venues from attacks. Conditioning a fifth of that money on election overhauls gives Washington new leverage over how ballots are cast and counted.
DHS told Fox News the requirements aim to shield election systems from foreign interference, insider threats, and cyberattacks. Detractors, including commentators on MS NOW, have called the policy coercive, arguing it uses counterterrorism dollars to push voting changes ahead of November's midterms.
For readers tracking how federal funding shapes security policy, follow more Fintech & Crypto Alerts coverage of infrastructure and compliance fights.
Can States Challenge the Funding Threat?
Election law scholars cited by the Times note that states, not the federal executive, traditionally administer elections under the Constitution. UCLA professor Rick Hasen said even willing states may struggle to implement some changes before the midterms, and others would need new legislation.
The administration has faced lawsuits when it conditioned homeland security grants on immigration cooperation. In December, a federal judge blocked an effort to withhold grants from states that declined to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement, according to reporting on the new rules.
States now face a stark choice: absorb potentially costly election changes, forfeit 20% of antiterrorism funding, or challenge the policy in court—a path critics say has succeeded against earlier versions of the administration's election push.