A change in federal policy could result in a 75% reduction in an emergency management grant for Shawano County in 2025 and possibly the complete elimination of the program in 2026.
Shawano County Sheriff Lt. Chris Madle, also the county’s emergency management director, told the public safety committee Dec. 3 the grant program was halted earlier this year and new rules mean grant recipients would only get 25% of what was originally anticipated.
The county regularly receives around $40,000 from the Emergency Management Performance Grant.
“The money that we would normally get for this year, they stopped the funding on it, and then they reopened it, but they only opened it with the performance period from October to the end of the year,” Madle said.
According to the National Association of Counties, on Nov. 4, a coalition of 12 states filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, alleging that the recent changes to emergency management grants are unlawful and could disrupt state and local preparedness efforts.
The lawsuit challenges new conditions imposed on the Emergency Management Performance Grant and the Homeland Security Grant Program.
According to the complaint, the plaintiffs — which includes Wisconsin — argue that FEMA’s changes threaten ongoing projects and limit the ability of local governments to manage long-term preparedness efforts. They also allege the new requirements exceed FEMA’s authority and were imposed without adequate explanation or adherence to federal procedural standards.
FEMA recently announced that for grants requiring population counts, states must now submit revised population numbers that exclude individuals removed under immigration law.
Population counts based on U.S. census data have long been used to allocate grant funding, but FEMA’s new requirement that states recertify their populations, including a detailed explanation of the methodology used, adds a significant burden, according to the National Association of Counties.
States currently do not know what methodologies will be acceptable or if their calculations will be approved, as the federal government has not provided guidance on how to perform these recalculations.
Also, the deadline to apply for the 2026 grants is usually Oct. 31, but Madle said the application process for next year has not yet started.
If the program is not funded, the entire estimated $40,000 would be wiped off the county’s books in 2026.
“It’s not just us,” Madle said. “It’s all 72 counties in the state that are dealing with this. We’re not sure what’s happening with our grant money that we would normally get this year, and again, it’s not opened up as of next year.”
kpasson@newmedia-wi.com
