Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG)
Funding to build and sustain emergency management capabilities across preparedness, response, and recovery: planning, training, exercises, personnel, and administrative costs of running an emergency management program.
Who it is for
State, local, tribal, and territorial emergency management agencies. Local agencies receive funding as a sub-award from their state.
Department types: Any department
Before you start
How you apply: Apply through your state.
You do not apply to FEMA directly. FEMA awards EMPG to the state, and your local emergency management agency requests a sub-award from the state emergency management agency. Contact your state EMA to find out their sub-application process and deadlines.
Match required: Yes. EMPG requires a 50 percent match, meaning the recipient contributes an amount equal to the federal funds, which can be cash or in-kind.
How to apply
- Identify your state emergency management agency, the entity that receives EMPG from FEMA and passes it down.
- Contact them to ask about the local sub-award process, this year's priorities, and their internal deadline, which comes before the federal one.
- Make sure your agency is registered in SAM.gov, which is required for any federal pass-through funding.
- Prepare a work plan showing the preparedness activities the funding will support, aligned to your state's priorities.
- Submit your sub-application to the state on their timeline, and be ready to meet the match requirement.
Deadline: Annual federal cycle, but your real deadline is your state's internal sub-award deadline, which is earlier and varies by state. Ask your state EMA. (Annual cycle)
Funding: Total program funding was about $319.5 million in the most recent cycle, distributed across all states and territories by formula. Local sub-award amounts vary widely by state.
Verified as of 2026-05-31. Programs are checked periodically against their official source. Funding details and deadlines change. Confirm the current requirements on the official program page before you apply.