WASHINGTON -- Today, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas announced the final allocations for $475 million for seven fiscal year 2021 competitive preparedness grant programs. These allocations, together with the almost $1.5 billion in non-competitive grant funding announced earlier this year, total nearly $2 billion in FY 2021 to help prepare our nation against man-made threats and natural disasters.
The grant programs provide funding to state, local, tribal and territorial governments, nonprofit agencies and the private sector in building and sustaining capabilities to prevent, protect against, respond to and recover from acts of terrorism and other disasters. The total amount for each grant program is set by Congress and the allocations are made by the Secretary.
Secretary Mayorkas issued the following statement about this year’s grant awards:
“Through these grant programs, we demonstrate our steadfast commitment to addressing the most significant and persistent terrorism-related threats to the homeland today,” said Secretary Mayorkas. “Many of the communities and nonprofit organizations receiving these grants have been historically underserved. The funding allocated for each of the grant programs will allow these communities and organizations to build, sustain and improve their preparedness and response capabilities. I look forward to working with our state, local, tribal and territorial partners to achieve these shared goals.”
For the competitive grant program allocations that are being announced today, DHS identified four critical priority areas for attention: cybersecurity, soft targets and crowded places, domestic violent extremism and emerging threats. Applicants under the grant programs were provided percentage increases in their competitive scores for aligning their projects around these areas.
All capabilities and programs being built or sustained using homeland security grant funding must have a clear linkage to the core capabilities articulated in the National Preparedness Goal.
Preparedness Grant Program Allocations for Fiscal Year 2021
The following grants are competitive, with awards announced today:
Operation Stonegarden: provides $90 million to enhance cooperation and coordination among state, local, tribal, territorial, and federal law enforcement agencies to jointly enhance security along the United States land and water borders.
Tribal Homeland Security Grant Program: provides $15 million to eligible tribal nations to implement preparedness initiatives to help strengthen the nation against risk associated with potential terrorist attacks and other hazards.
Nonprofit Security Grant Program: provides $180 million to support target hardening and other physical security enhancements for nonprofit organizations that are at high risk of a terrorist attack. This year, $90 million is provided to nonprofits in Urban Area Security Initiative-designated areas, and $90 million is provided to nonprofits outside those designated urban areas located in any state or territory.
Port Security Grant Program: provides $100 million to help protect critical port infrastructure from terrorism, enhance maritime domain awareness, improve port-wide maritime security risk management, and maintain or re-establish maritime security mitigation protocols that support port recovery and resiliency capabilities.
Transit Security Grant Program: provides $88 million to owners and operators of public transit systems to protect critical surface transportation and the traveling public from acts of terrorism and to increase the resilience of transit infrastructure.
Intercity Bus Security Grant Program: provides $2 million to owners and operators of intercity bus systems to protect surface transportation infrastructure and the traveling public from acts of terrorism and to increase the resilience of transit infrastructure.
The following non-competitive grants were awarded Feb. 25 to recipients based on a number of factors:
State Homeland Security Program: provides $415 million to support the implementation of risk-driven, capabilities-based state homeland security strategies to address capability targets. Awards are based on statutory minimums and relative risk as determined by DHS/FEMA’s risk methodology.
Urban Area Security Initiative: provides $615 million to enhance regional preparedness and capabilities in 31 high-threat, high-density areas. Awards are based on relative risk as determined by risk methodology.
Emergency Management Performance Grant: including the funding provided under the American Rescue Plan Act, provides more than $455 million to assist state, local, tribal and territorial governments in enhancing and sustaining all-hazards emergency management capabilities. Relative population is considered.
Intercity Passenger Rail: provides $10 million to Amtrak to protect critical surface transportation infrastructure and the traveling public from acts of terrorism and increase the resilience of the Amtrak rail system. Award made per congressional direction.
Further information on preparedness grant programs is available at www.dhs.gov and http://www.fema.gov/grants.