Nevada scrambles to adapt to FEMA funding cuts, new requirement to fund border security

(Photo by Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)

A new requirement that states fund immigration enforcement and the apparent axing of a grant program for densely populated urban areas will result in the State of Nevada having significantly less money to spend on emergency preparedness and counterterrorism, top state administrators said Tuesday.

Brett Compston, who leads Nevada’s Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, warned members of the Nevada Resilience Advisory Committee that the state will only be able to fund “only the existential, sustainment-type projects.”

The Federal Emergency Management Agency plans to cut its Urban Areas Security Initiative program, according to memos reported on by CNN last week, though it has not told states or formally announced it. Last year, Nevada received around $4.4 million through the UASI  program, which was established after 9/11 to provide funding for high-threat, high-density urban areas, like the Las Vegas Strip.

“The assumption that we have to operate on is that we will not receive UASI,” said Compston.

That means the state will have to spread money from a separate FEMA grant program, known as the State Homeland Security Grant, across the entirety of the state, he added.

Complicating matters are new requirements set by the Trump administration for those homeland security grants. Most prominent among the new requirements: States must now spend 10% of their funding on “supporting border crisis response and enforcement.”

Nevada expects to receive roughly $4 million in these grants, meaning it will have to spend approximately $400,000 on immigration actions, which Compston said could include information sharing and support to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security.

The end result is there will be “$3.6 million that we have available to spread across all the things that we traditionally spend on,” he added.

Cary Underwood, representing the Southern Nevada Counter Terrorism Center, asked whether existing activities related to watchlists of transnational actors might satisfy the new requirements set by FEMA.

Compston responded that he didn’t know but his office has contacted FEMA to request additional information and clarification.

Compston also said significant changes were made to another FEMA program called the Emergency Management Performance Grant, though he did not elaborate.

“There are, I don’t want to say intensive, but, different requirements,” he said.

The Nevada Resilience Advisory Committee will meet the morning of Aug. 6 to rank possible emergency management projects by priority. Then, those plans must be accepted by two back-to-back homeland security meetings scheduled for Aug. 8. That will leave the state with just two full days to finalize all of the paperwork and submit them by FEMA’s set deadline.

The advisory committee is composed of 34 members representing Nevada cities, counties, law enforcement, fire departments, educational agencies and other public agencies.

Compston told the members he “cannot overemphasize the importance” of the meeting, both because of the difficult task of prioritizing funding requests and because the shortened timeline leaves “no error room.”

It’s “normally a 60-day process that’s squeezed into 13” days, he added. “But I have great confidence in this team.”

FEMA typically issues what’s known as a “notice of funding opportunity” in the spring. This year, the notices for the State Homeland Security Grant and Emergency Management Performance Grant programs were not issued until July 28, leaving states across the country scrambling to write or adjust their applications under an accelerated timeline. No information has been given regarding the Urban Areas Security Initiative.

Compston, in an emailed statement to the Nevada Current Wednesday, emphasized that FEMA has “not issued a formal decision regarding (UASI’s) cancellation” and that his office is “closely monitoring ongoing discussions at the federal level regarding the future” of the program. He described their current efforts as “proactive.”

The agency, he also wrote, “remains committed to ensuring Nevada is well-prepared for all hazards, including natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other critical incidents.”

Compston did not offer additional clarity on how immigration enforcement dollars might be spent, but wrote that their plan “will adhere to federal guidelines while ensuring investments align with the unique priorities and risks faced by our state.”

Gov. Joe Lombardo’s office did not respond to emailed questions from the Current about whether the governor is concerned about the reduction in federal funding for emergency preparedness, or whether he believes the state should spend its available money on immigration enforcement.

Backlash from Democrats

U.S. Rep. Dina Titus earlier this month led Nevada’s Democratic delegation in a letter urging U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to issue the notice of funding opportunity for FEMA’s Urban Area Security Initiative grants.

The letter noted that UASI grants were used to purchase equipment used by emergency personnel during the mass shooting on the Las Vegas Strip in October 2017. It also noted that the billions of dollars in funding for the grant programs was approved by Congress.

CNN would later report that FEMA intends to end the UASI grant program entirely.

Titus in a statement provided to the Current called the decision to end the program “deeply irresponsible” and said it “endangers our public safety.”

She continued, “These grants played a significant role in the response to the Harvest Festival shootings and are critical to protecting the public in all major cities and at big events such as the Super Bowl, Formula One races, and golf tournaments. I implore Secretary Noem to administer these public safety grants as Congress directed and ensure that our first responders and emergency personnel have the tools they need to address future threats in our communities.”

Meanwhile, a group of 20 Democratic attorneys general, including Nevada’s Aaron Ford, have sued over the new requirements tying emergency and disaster preparedness and relief funding to state immigration enforcement actions.

The attorneys general argue the requirement violates the Constitution and forces states “to choose between readiness for disasters and emergencies, on the one hand, and their judgment about how best to investigate and prosecute crimes, on the other.”

Other federal funding canceled

The State of Nevada is also scrapping a number of planned projects due to the cancellation of FEMA’s Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities Program. FEMA announced the program’s cancellation in April and said it would rescind $882 million of not-yet-spent money nationwide.

“The BRIC program was yet another example of a wasteful and ineffective FEMA program,” read a statement from a FEMA spokesperson. “It was more concerned with political agendas than helping Americans affected by natural disasters.”

According to a report prepared for the Nevada Resilience Advisory Committee, the state expects the loss of $12.2 million of previously awarded funds, resulting in the cancellation of seven projects.

Those projects include improvements at the Hobart Creek Reservoir, which is part of the water system servicing Carson City, and construction of three solar power stations for the Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District and two generators for communities in Douglas County.