Harris County could lose millions in federal anti-terrorism funding that pays for first-responder radio networks, bomb squad equipment and emergency alert systems unless it overhauls how it runs elections, according to a federal lawsuit filed Tuesday, Aug. 18.
The county sued the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., arguing the agencies are illegally withholding 20% of Homeland Security Grant Program funds unless local governments comply with five new election administration requirements. Harris County received roughly $6.9 million in HSGP funds in fiscal year 2024 alone, according to the complaint. The Houston-area urban region is slated to receive $23.3 million in fiscal year 2026.
Those grants flow through the Houston-Galveston Area Council and the Houston Urban Area Working Group to local law enforcement agencies across the region, funding equipment and training for agencies serving Nassau Bay, Seabrook, Webster and unincorporated Clear Lake communities.
No Harris County officials issued public statements on the lawsuit. The county's legal filing speaks for itself.
What DHS is demanding
FEMA announced in June 2026 that grant recipients must:
- Switch from electronic voting machines to hand-marked paper ballots
- Conduct a 5% manual post-election ballot audit
- Reconcile the number of voters with ballots cast
- Verify citizenship of all registered voters through the federal SAVE database within 120 days
- Verify citizenship of all election workers and polling-place staff through SAVE
The suit names DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton as defendants. El Paso County, the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and the City of Columbus, Ohio, joined as co-plaintiffs.
Why Harris County says it can't comply
The complaint argues that switching to paper ballots in a county of 4.8 million residents could violate Texas law, which requires counties to finish counting regular ballots within 24 hours of polls closing.
The county also challenges the SAVE voter-verification system, which has a documented history of misidentifying eligible voters as noncitizens. In late July, the Texas Secretary of State's Office directed counties to reinstate some of the 2,724 registered voters the system had incorrectly flagged.
"Our law enforcement agencies rely on this funding to purchase critical equipment that helps protect and save lives," El Paso County Attorney Christina Sanchez said in a statement accompanying the filing.
The plaintiffs argue Congress created the grant program after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to help local governments prevent and respond to terrorism. They contend FEMA has no authority to dictate voting equipment, ballot-counting methods or voter-roll maintenance.
A FEMA spokesperson said the agency anticipated pushback and described the requirements as common-sense election security measures, according to USA Today.
Local impact
Harris County has used HSGP funds to train special response teams in detecting chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive materials; equip bomb squads; maintain emergency alert systems; and install cameras and screening equipment at transportation centers and public venues, according to the complaint.
No specific allocation data is publicly available for individual Clear Lake area police departments, though the grants are distributed regionally through H-GAC.
What happens next
DHS has not filed a response. No hearing date has been set. The plaintiffs are asking the court to declare the election mandates unlawful and block DHS from withholding or reducing grant funds based on the conditions. A separate coalition of Democratic states filed a similar lawsuit in July over the same requirements.
The case is Harris County, Texas v. Mullin, No. 1:26-cv-02886, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
