WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, joined U.S. Senator Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee,in urging the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to reverse a recent policy that restricts states from receiving full disbursement of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) counterterrorism funding if they do not comply with new election-related conditions, including participation in the agency’s flawed SAVE system anddisclosing sensitive voter information.  

In their letter, the Senators urge DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin to immediately reverse the policy to protect the program’s lawful purpose of helping states prepare for and respond to catastrophic events: “Respectfully, we believe this is a mistake. Compromising the intent and the ability of HSGP to support homeland security advancements puts American lives at risk. In Vermont and New Jersey, HSGP funds have supported critical investments in emergency operation centers, interoperable communication systems, and first responder training. Among several new mandates, states are now required to use U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) to verify voters’ citizenship status. If states refuse, they stand to lose at least 20%—and up to the entirety—of their HSGP grant funding.” 

HSGP was created after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, to help states prepare for and respond to all hazards, including acts of terrorism. HSGP makes roughly $1 billion available annually for state and municipal activities to prevent, prepare for, and respond to acts of terrorism and other catastrophic events. 

“For decades, Republican and Democratic administrations have operated HSGP evenhandedly, recognizing that the physical security and well-being of the American people take precedence over partisan objectives. The decision to move forward with these requirements means the grant program will become less effective. There are good faith disagreements about the efficacy of the SAVE system. In October 2025, DHS acknowledged that the SAVE system can produce inaccurate results ‘due to misspelling of names, transposed numbers, or incomplete information[.]’ One county that received data from the agency found the system falsely flagged voters as noncitizens 25% of the time.” the Senators continued. “Compelling states to run sensitive voter data against the information contained in SAVE will force some states—like Vermont and New Jersey—to violate their own laws that prohibit disclosure of voters’ protected information, even to federal databases.” 

The Senators underscore that these concerns are not resolved by FEMA’s August 10, 2026, HSGP Information Bulletin, which provided updated guidance for these grants: “These concerns are not resolved by FEMA’s August 10, 2026, HSGP Information Bulletin, which provides updated guidance for these grants. According to the bulletin, states may also satisfy the SAVE system requirements by submitting a list of voter names to USCIS. Consequently, the agency is still mandating the disclosure of voter information, requiring some states to violate their own privacy laws or risk losing critical, unrelated counterterrorism funding.” 

Read and download the Senators’ letter to DHS Secretary Mullin. 

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