El Paso County and Harris County have initiated legal action against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), joining forces with communities in Tennessee and Ohio. The lawsuit challenges new federal grant requirements that, the counties argue, jeopardize both election security and public safety.
In June, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that it would withhold 20% of funding from the DHS’s Homeland Security Grant Program unless local officials complied with five new mandates that would alter their election procedures. These mandates include a transition from voting machines that utilize QR and bar codes to those that rely on paper ballots, the implementation of manual ballot audits, and the use of the DHS’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system for voter registration checks.
Critics of the SAVE system point out that it has a history of misidentifying legitimate voters as noncitizens. Despite this, the Trump administration advocated for its use, fueled by unfounded claims that millions of noncitizens have registered to vote. In late July, Texas officials instructed county clerks to reinstate some of the 2,724 voters flagged as potential noncitizens by this system.
The counties involved in the lawsuit contend that adhering to these requirements would incur millions in costs and diminish the security of their elections, while also placing approximately $200 million in federal grant funds at risk nationwide.
The plaintiffs’ legal filing states, “Implementing these onerous changes will require Plaintiffs to expend staff time and budgetary resources, and doing so in the hurried manner that the federal government seeks will undermine the sound administration of elections.”
Specifically for Harris County, the lawsuit highlights that switching to paper ballots could conflict with state law, which mandates that counties must complete the counting of regular ballots within 24 hours of polling closure.
The DHS grant has been a vital resource for cities and counties for decades, providing funding for preparedness and response measures against terrorist threats and other security issues. The counties argue that withholding these funds could compromise the safety of cities that depend on specialized training and equipment financed by the grant.
El Paso County Attorney Christina Sanchez emphasized, “Local election offices already face some of the toughest oversight and requirements designed to keep their operations safe and secure. Imposing additional requirements is both costly and burdensome, while our law enforcement agencies rely on this funding to purchase critical equipment that helps protect and save lives.”
The lawsuit also asserts that DHS does not have the authority to impose conditions on grant funds regarding changes to local election procedures without congressional approval. This latest legal challenge follows a similar lawsuit filed in July by a coalition of Democratic states expressing comparable concerns.
A FEMA spokesperson commented that the decision to implement these requirements stemmed from significant concerns regarding election security and anticipated opposition to the measures, labeling the pushback as “partisan.” The spokesperson stated, “We fully expected opposition to common-sense measures designed to protect election security and safeguard the integrity of American democracy.”
Since 2023, DHS has required federal grant recipients to detail how they will utilize funds for election security, but the lawsuit contends that it did not previously mandate alterations to election procedures. The petition was filed in federal district court located in the District of Columbia.
