Federal grant programs / Department of Homeland Security

Emergency Management Performance Grants (97.042)

Also known as Emergency Management Performance Grant Program

• Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$2.0 billion
• Grant awards381
• Typical award$4.2 million
• Awarded in FY 2025$316 million
• Size rank165 of 1,823
• Type of assistanceFormula grants

Key findings

• Annual funding fell from $448 million in fiscal 2021 to $316 million in fiscal 2025.
• It is the 165th largest of 1,823 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
• The 20 largest recipients received 60% of the money.
• Awards went to recipients in 58 states and territories.

What the program funds

The primary objective of the Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) Program is to provide funds to assist state, local, tribal, and territorial emergency management agencies to implement the National Preparedness System (NPS) and to support the National Preparedness Goal (the Goal) of a secure and resilient nation. To that end, program objectives include: 1) building or sustaining those capabilities that are identified as high priority through the Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (THIRA)/Stakeholder Preparedness Review (SPR) process and other relevant information sources; and 2) closing capability gaps that are identified in the state or territory’s most recent SPR. The EMPG Program is designed to support ongoing, sustained improvement in emergency management capabilities improving the ability of emergency management agencies to prepare for, prevent, respond to, and recover from all hazards. Performance metrics for this program are as follows: • Performance Measure 1: Percentage of capability-building projects that align to capability gaps identified by states, territories, and urban areas in their THIRA/SPR submissions (50%). Performance Measure 2: Percentage of high priority capabilities, as identified in THIRA/SPR submissions, that are built or sustained prior to award closeout (50%). Performance Measure 3: Percentage of capability-building projects that address a high priority core capability as identified by THIRA/SPR submissions (50%). Performance Measure 4: Percentage of projects that build or sustain capabilities relating to the EMPG Program national priority areas and Regional Administrator (RA) agreed-upon priorities (80%). Performance Measure 5: Percentage of Planning, Training, and/or Exercise related projects that align with closing address capability gaps as identified and documented in the state/territory’s most recent THIRA/ SPR submission, Mitigation Plan, AARs, Audit/Monitoring Findings, Continuity Assessments, or Other Deliberate Plans (50%).

From the federal Assistance Listing. Read the full listing on SAM.gov.

Open opportunities

No opportunity under this program is open or forecast on Grants.gov right now. Programs often post once a year, so the funding history below shows what to expect.

Rules from the program listing

Who can apply

ET26020 - State Eligible applicants are limited to states and U.S. territories.

What the money can and cannot pay for

EMPG grant recipients and subrecipients may only use EMPG grant funds for the purpose set forth in the grant award, and must use funding in a way that is consistent with the statutory authority for the award and in accordance with 2 C.F.R. Part 200 DHS/FEMA grant funds may only be used for the purpose set forth in the grant, and must be consistent with the statutory authority for the award. Grant funds must be used in accordance with 2 C.F.R. Part 200. Grant funds may not be used for matching funds for other Federal grants/cooperative agreements, lobbying, or intervention in Federal regulatory or adjudicatory proceedings. In addition, Federal funds may not be used to sue the Federal government or any other government entity. Pre-award costs are allowable only with the written consent of DHS and if they are included in the award agreement. Federal employees are prohibited from serving in any capacity (paid or unpaid) on any proposal submitted under this program. Federal employees may not receive funds under this award. EMPG or EMPG-ARPA Program recipients may only fund projects that were included in the FY 2021 Work Plan that was submitted to and approved by an EMPG Regional Program Manager. For more information, please see the FY 2021 EMPG Program NOFO/FY 2021 EMPG-ARPA NOFO and PGM.;

Matching requirements

This program has no statutory formula. Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

Deadlines

An applicant should consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact in his or her State for more information on the process the State requires to be followed in applying for assistance, if the State has selected the program for review. (See https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/codification/executive-order/12372.html; Intergovernmental Review (SPOC List) (whitehouse.gov)

Award range and average, in the agency's words

EMPG Program funding is determined based on population. The range of awards varies from $50,000 to over $31 million

Examples of funded projects

Fiscal Year2025: Funding under the EMPG Program is typically used to strengthen the overall emergency management infrastructure and serves as a catalyst for training first responders, developing comprehensive emergency plans, and acquiring essential equipment and resources. Most EMPG Program funding is used to support the salary costs for emergency managers, including the staffing of state and local emergency operations centers.Fiscal Year2026: Funding under the EMPG Program is typically used to strengthen the overall emergency management infrastructure and serves as a catalyst for training first responders, developing comprehensive emergency plans, and acquiring essential equipment and resources. Most EMPG Program funding is used to support the salary costs for emergency managers, including the staffing of state and local emergency operations centers.

Quoted from the program's federal Assistance Listing. The notice of funding opportunity is the official source for each competition's rules.

Who usually wins

State and local governments received 98% of the money, nonprofits 1.6% and tribes less than 0.1%.

By state

56 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards.

Award amounts are federal obligations reported to USAspending.gov for fiscal 2021 to 2025; see how our data works.