In a lawsuit brought against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security ( DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) over newly implemented rules for federal security grants related to election reforms, two Texas counties have joined jurisdictions in Ohio and Tennessee.
The Homeland Security Grant Program ( HSGP), which was established in 2003, provides funding to local and state governments to stop terrorist attacks and other threats. At least 3 percent of each grant must be used to ensure election security.
FEMA announced in June that 20 % of HSGP funds may be withdrawn if consumers do not implement certain election reform initiatives, such as programs to switch from barcode- or QR code-based voting machines to ones that accept hand-marked ballots.
Other requirements include statewide manual audits of 5 % of the ballots cast after federal elections, reconciliation of the number of participating voters with the number of ballots cast, use of the State Voter Registration Database’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements ( SAVE), and use of SAVE, or another authorized government system, to verify the citizenship of anyone working in polling places or operating election systems.
El Paso and Harris regions filed a lawsuit asking the federal government to stop applying the new regulations, along with Columbus, Nashville, and Davidson County in Tennessee.
Plaintiffs contend that FEMA’s fresh election-related requirements are “arbitrary and capricious” and go beyond the company’s legal authority. According to DHS data cited in the issue, they also notice errors in SAVE, which has an estimated 5 to 10 % error rate.
Toby Merrill of the Public Rights Project, a non-profit civil rights group representing the defendants, claimed that DHS attempted to use the money to “dramatically restructure how local governments run votes.”
In an emailed statement, Merrill wrote that” these new conditions would undermine the native control that has for decades ensured our elections are secure and safe.” ” We’re happy to support cities and counties in fighting against this dangerous federal overreach.”
Although Harris County, which used paper ballots earlier this year, had a program with 2.7 million registered voters, those votes are machine-marked.
The state claims that to adhere to the FEMA regulations, it would need to spend millions to switch from the Hart Verity system to one with unique hand-marked paper ballots, as well as invest in additional equipment and staff. Additionally, the state points out that the Texas requirement for results to be reported within 24 hours of an election would not be followed by election officials, and that the audit necessity may get three to four months.
Abbie Kamin, the interim attorney for Harris County, described the new regulations as” the kind of federal overreach we’ve come to expect from]President Donald Trump’s ] management.
It is not only poor to threaten the funding for law enforcement and public safety that our agencies rely on, but it is also improper to withhold funds to support political power grabs that protect our communities. It’s dangerous, she said in a statement, adding that “local command of votes is embedded in our Constitution” and that Americans must stop efforts to “upend” that power.
El Paso County pointed out that the state would reduce the number of election places and may have to lower voter outreach efforts to cover compliance costs without the additional revenue.
Harris County received more than$ 6.6 million in HSGP grant money in 2024, and it anticipates receiving a percentage of a$ 23.3 million award in 2026 for the area that includes Houston, Sugar Land, and The Woodlands.
El Paso County anticipates receiving practically$ 2 million from the 2026 prizes.
Local election agencies, law enforcement organizations, and the communities they are entrusted to serve, according to El Paso County Attorney Christina Sanchez, who claimed that “local election offices now face some of the toughest monitoring and requirements designed to keep their businesses safe and secure.”
HSGP funds are first given to the Office of the Governor, which then sub-awards them to local authorities.
Under President Joe Biden’s administration, the requirement to spend 3 percent of each grant on election security was first put into effect in 2023, and FEMA mandated that grant recipients follow through with this requirement last year. Otherwise, the agency would withhold 3 percent of each grant.
A federal court in December 2025 halted the implementation of HSGP grants related to immigration enforcement efforts, and despite the administration’s initial appeal, DHS and FEMA moved to dismiss the appeal in May.
Trump has urged Congress to pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility America Act, which would require citizenship to be a condition of election, but the measure has failed in the U.S. Senate.
