MARQUETTE — The Michigan State Police Emergency Management and Homeland Security Division held a virtual media conference this week to provide an update on federal withholding of emergency management grants managed and administered by the MSP/EMHSD.

Capt. Kevin Sweeney, deputy state director of emergency management and commander of the MSP/EMHSD, was the spokesperson.

The MSP/EMHSD serves as the state administrative agent for the withheld grants, which are used for disaster recovery efforts, mitigation projects and more. The hold in funding is not affecting MSP troopers and law enforcement who are out on the road.

Millions of dollars in grants, administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, are currently on hold at the federal level following President Donald Trump’s executive order to pause multiple federal grants, which he issued in late January.

Despite a court injunction following the order that lifted the pause, FEMA placed holds on several federal grants, which is preventing the state from accessing funds for reimbursement of eligible emergency expenses.

As of Tuesday, approximately $56 million in federal reimbursement requests are on hold for the MSP/EMHSD, with a potential impact of $300 million in federal grant reimbursements being affected if the delays continue.

When grants are awarded, subrecipients complete the work and request reimbursement from the state. The state then reviews those requests, and then formally requests reimbursement from FEMA. When FEMA approves the state requests, funds are sent to the state and distributed to the subrecipients.

The holds are taking place during FEMA’s approval step, where a new manual review step has been introduced.

According to Sweeney, the following MSP/EMHSD grants are affected by this hold:

≤ Disaster grants, which provide financial assistance to states for response, recovery and mitigation efforts following disasters. The current affected amount is approximately $52 million.

≤ The Homeland Security Grant Program, which enhances state, local, tribal and territorial capabilities to prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from terrorism and other threats. The current affected amount is approximately $1.5 million.

≤ The Nonprofit Security Grant Program, which supports nonprofit organizations at high risk of terrorist attacks by strengthening their security and preparedness. The current affected amount is approximately $850,000.

≤ The Emergency Management Performance Grant, which funds MSP/EMHSD and emergency management programs statewide, both at the local and state levels. The current affected amount is approximately $1.5 million.

≤ Hazard mitigation grants, which provide funding for projects that reduce the risk and impact of future disasters. The current affected amount is approximately $2,000.

“Some of the key concerns and communication we’ve had with our federal partners, specifically FEMA, (is that) no reimbursement requests have been processed since the holds were placed,” said Sweeney. “The last successful federal reimbursement we’ve seen here in Michigan was on Feb. 11…. Initially, we weren’t sure what the holds were for. The holds just showed up in the FEMA system. There was a lack of communication.

However, that communication has greatly improved here in the last week or 10 days where we’ve now received a couple of different emails from FEMA indicating (and) letting us know that there is a new step in the process, specifically a manual review step that’s being implemented.”

FEMA has communicated with the MSP/EMHSD that the step could cause significant delays in the reimbursement process. As of now, there has been no clear guidance or instructions communicated to the MSP/EMHSD on how they should navigate this additional step.

The MSP/EMHSD is still waiting on information from its federal partners regarding how to provide FEMA with the specific information requested.

Prior to the funding hold, it was typical for MSP/EMHSD to put in a request for reimbursement and hear back in three to seven business days, following the request through FEMA processing before the funds would actually be put into the State of Michigan’s account.

The last funds successfully drawn from the EMPG was on Jan. 28. There was a phone call with FEMA partners on Tuesday morning, where MSP/EMHSD is hopeful to see movements on that funding soon.

The MSP/EMHSD was notified of the manual review step in late February, and again through a FEMA email in early March. Sweeney quoted part of the email, which states that “FEMA and DHS are conducting additional reviews of allocations before releasing funds for all grants. These actions will ensure that funding is obligated and dispersed in line with the Secretary’s direction so that we can continue to support and prioritize communities and disaster survivors.”

Michigan currently has four open disasters that are federally recognized and related to the funding; the Houghton-area floods from 2018, the Midland-area floods from 2020, the 2021 southeast Michigan flooding, and the COVID-19 pandemic. A lot of projects are still being worked on to this day.

On March 6, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and 21 other state attorneys general won a preliminary injunction in a U.S. District Court to block the withholding of federal agencies’ grants, loans and financial assistance. The court has ordered the federal administration to provide evidence of compliance regarding this issue, with a deadline earlier this week.

Sweeney said that the MSP/EMHSD is encouraging its subrecipients to continue submitting their reimbursement requests to the state, and the work to process those reimbursements is continuing. However, it’s getting to the point where the MSP/EMHSD will need to start looking to see if any changes need to be made.

“These holds on these grants have the potential to disrupt services and payroll for personnel if it continues. We felt it was important to make everyone aware of this issue,” Sweeney said.

The Emergency Management Performance Grant and the Homeland Security Grant Program help pay for payroll both at the state and local levels.

At the state level, the majority of the MSP/EMHSD is funded through the EMPG. The HSGP is also used at the state level with the Michigan Intelligence Operations Center and some of its staff. The EMPG is also used at the local level for local emergency managers and the HSGP funds some regional planners.

“We’re all hopeful that the money is going to start flowing again, but discussions are being had at the state level (to determine a potential backup plan) and we’ve encouraged our local partners to do the same to evaluate their set of circumstances and the projects that they may have in the hopper,” said Sweeney. “There would have to be some significant change here, at least at the state level, with how we fund emergency management if those funds were to be shut off. We’re hopeful that it won’t be.”

The full media session can be viewed online via YouTube at youtu.be/mtqxZfA92es?si=kNOOTqaG1peRCRSq.

Abby LaForest can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 548. Her email is alaforest@miningjournal.net.