Published July 16, 2026 at 5:32 AM EDT

Pennsylvania officials say President Donald Trump’s administration is withholding nearly half of the state’s allocated Homeland Security dollars from last year.

And grants for the year ahead come with new voting-related requirements attached at a time when the president is expected to continue questioning states’ election security. (Trump plans a primetime speech Thursday night that will reportedly focus on election interference.)

Critics say the move could be the latest attempt to pressure states to adopt more rigid election measures ahead of consequential fall midterms.

Since Trump’s second term began in January 2025, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency said it has been allocated nearly $33 million in federal dollars for counterterrorism efforts, cybersecurity and election security. But a chunk of last year’s earmarks, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, has not been released to the state.

“[The Department of Homeland Security] has placed a programmatic hold on distribution of approximately $15 million of this grant money while they continue reviewing project details,” said PEMA spokesperson Jeff Jumper in an email.

The projects under review are related to terrorism prevention — intelligence analysis, information sharing, threat recognition — and other “national priority areas,” including cybersecurity and election security, Jumper said in the email.

Pennsylvania had already planned to spend its entire allocation of those federal funds on such projects under Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration, he added.

It’s unclear when DHS will disburse the remainder of funds for fiscal year 2025. But last week, the agency said it would withhold 20% of counterterrorism funds for fiscal year 2026 from states that ignore several election-related demands.

Among other requirements to receive 100% of the federal funds next year, states must agree to run voter rolls through a federal citizenship database, agree to manually audit 5% of ballots, and ensure no non-citizens are working the polls, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said. States are also asked to transition away from barcodes or QR codes in favor of hand-marked paper ballots.

Several of the demands mirror the terms contained in the president’s preferred election-reform bill that failed last month in Congress.

In a statement, state emergency management officials said “FEMA’s Homeland Security Grant program provides critical funding that PEMA and its local partners use to detect threats, prevent terrorism, and keep Pennsylvanians safe — supporting things like cybersecurity infrastructure, equipment for first responders, and strengthening preparedness around the Commonwealth.”

“Pennsylvania is still reviewing the new program requirements from the federal government. We will continue our nonpartisan work to ensure elections in the Commonwealth remain free, fair, safe, and secure,” PEMA said. “We are currently working through the application process in coordination with state and county partners.”

Shapiro’s office and the Pennsylvania Department of State, which oversees elections, deferred comment to PEMA.

Congressional Democrats went a step further, however, condemning the grant requirements and calling on the release of all other delayed FEMA funds.

In a letter to Mullin and FEMA administrator Robert J. Fenton, U.S. House Democrats on the Homeland Security committee called the conditions “troubling, potentially unlawful guidance that includes blatant attempts to force communities to comply with the Trump administration’s political demands or risk losing millions in counterterrorism grant funding.”

When asked for comment Wednesday, DHS shared a news release from last week, in which Mullin said the grant process contains “common-sense measures” that enhance national security.

“Under President Trump’s leadership, we are taking decisive action to protect election systems from threats like foreign interference, insider threats, and cyberattacks,” Mullins said in the statement. “These new requirements for homeland security grant recipients will preserve election integrity and ensure that Americans can trust the results.”

U.S. Rep. Summer Lee of Pittsburgh and U.S. Sen. John Fetterman are among the federal lawmakers who recently have called on the Trump administration to expedite the release of federal funds, though not dollars earmarked for counterterrorism.

In a letter Tuesday to federal budget director Russel Vought, Lee decried a proposal that would give the Trump administration more authority to terminate or delay community violence-intervention grants.

Meanwhile, Fetterman’s office said the recent release of $13.5 million from FEMA comes months after the senator urged the agency to disburse money owed to local governments for disaster prevention and to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center for pandemic-era expenses.

Chris Potter of WESA contributed reporting.