REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
June 9, 2026
FROM
CRISANTA GONZALEZ, Director of Emergency Management, Office of Emergency Services
SUBJECT
Title
Fiscal Year 2025 Emergency Management Performance Grant and Fiscal Year 2025 Homeland Security Grant Program Applications
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
1. Approve and authorize the submission of a grant application to the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, for the Fiscal Year 2025 Emergency Management Performance Grant in the amount of $499,805, for the period of July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2027.
2. Approve and authorize the submission of a grant application to the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, for the Fiscal Year 2025 Homeland Security Grant Program in the amount of $2,115,954, for the period of September 1, 2025 through June 30, 2028.
3. Authorize the individuals designated on Resolution No. 2025-10 as Authorized Agents (the Chair of the Board of Supervisors, the Chief Executive Officer, the County Chief Financial Officer, the Director of Emergency Management, or the Assistant Director of Emergency Management) for the Fiscal Year 2025 Emergency Management Performance Grant to execute and submit the application and, if the grant is approved, any subsequent non-substantive amendments required for the County to apply for the Fiscal Year 2025 Emergency Management Performance Grant and all documents required or deemed necessary by the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to administer the grant, subject to review by County Counsel.
4. Authorize the individuals designated on Resolution No. 2025-10 as Authorized Agents (the Chair of the Board of Supervisors, the Chief Executive Officer, the County Chief Financial Officer, the Director of Emergency Management, or the Assistant Director of Emergency Management), for the Fiscal Year 2025 Homeland Security Grant Program, to execute and submit the application and, if the grant is approved, any subsequent non-substantive amendments required for the County to apply for the Fiscal Year 2025 Homeland Security Grant Program and all documents required or deemed necessary by the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to administer the grant, subject to review by County Counsel.
5. Direct the Director of Emergency Management to transmit the applications referenced in Recommendation Nos. 1 and 2, and any non-substantive amendments, to the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors within 30 days of execution.
(Presenter: Crisanta Gonzalez, Director, 356-3998)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Improve County Government Operations.
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Enhance Readiness for Major Emergency Responses.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The grant applications pertaining to the Fiscal Year 2025 Emergency Management Performance Grant (FY 2025 EMPG) and the Fiscal Year 2025 Homeland Security Grant Program (FY 2025 HSGP) are for federal financial assistance provided by the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) through the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES). Implementation of the FY 2025 EMPG and the FY 2025 HSGP is contingent upon approval from Cal OES and FEMA. Adequate appropriations and revenue for both grants will be included in future Office of Emergency Services’ (OES) budgets.
FY 2025 EMPG
The FY 2025 EMPG allocation for California is expected to be $24,392,241, of which $499,805 will be allocated to San Bernardino County (County), based on a per capita formula. Upon award, these funds will be distributed to County OES and participating cities and towns within the County’s Operational Area (OA) for projects that align with the goals of the FY 2025 EMPG program. The OA consists of San Bernardino County and all subdivisions within the county geographical area, including cities and towns within the county boundaries. Allocations to participating cities and towns are also based on a per capita formula. Five percent of the grant funds ($24,990) will be allocated to OES, as the OA lead agency, for grant management and administration costs. This grant requires a dollar-for-dollar match, which can be accomplished through cash or in-kind services. OES will meet the match requirement through personnel costs for allowable emergency management program activities, which includes hours spent on any emergency preparedness activities that are not related to a disaster response or another grant program. Cities and towns will be responsible to meet their own match requirements.
The FY 2025 EMPG funds will be distributed to the OA as reflected in the following table:
|
Subrecipients |
Allocation Amount |
|
County Departments |
|
|
Office of Emergency Services |
$293,284 |
|
Cities/Towns |
|
|
Jurisdictions |
$206,521 |
|
Total |
$499,805 |
FY 2025 HSGP
The FY 2025 HSGP allocation for California is expected to be $40,790,789, of which $2,115,954 will be allocated to the County, based on a per capita formula. Upon award, these funds will be distributed to County OES, the San Bernardino County Fire Protection District, other County departments and agencies, and participating cities and towns within the OA for projects that align with the goals of the FY 2025 HSGP program. Allocations to participating cities and towns are also based on a per capita formula. Five percent of the grant funds ($105,797) will be allocated to OES, as the lead OA agency, for grant management and administration costs. No matching funds are required for the FY 2025 HSGP.
The Fiscal Year 2025 HSGP funds will be distributed to the OA as reflected in the following table:
|
Subrecipients |
Allocation Amount |
|
County Departments |
|
|
Office of Emergency Services |
$360,890 |
|
Probation Department |
$100,000 |
|
Department of Public Health |
$191,237 |
|
Registrar of Voters |
$63,479 |
|
Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator |
$568,731 |
|
Cities/Towns |
|
|
City Jurisdictions |
$521,617 |
|
Consolidated Fire Agencies (CONFIRE, JPA) |
$90,000 |
|
San Bernardino County Fire Protection District |
$220,000 |
|
Total |
$2,115,954 |
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The San Bernardino County OA was established as an intermediate level of California’s emergency services organization to manage and coordinate emergency preparedness efforts within the County. OES is the OA’s lead agency and has been receiving and distributing these grant funds annually since the onset of the programs.
EMPG
The EMPG, which is overseen by FEMA, provides funding to support comprehensive emergency management programs at the state, tribal, and local levels to encourage the improvement of mitigation, prevention, protection, preparedness, response, and recovery capabilities for all emergencies and disasters (natural or man-made). OES has been receiving EMPG funds since 2004 to assist with these efforts. Eligible projects for grant funding include emergency equipment, planning, organization, exercise, and training costs for disaster preparedness. The FY 2025 EMPG performance period is July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2027. This grant is retroactive annually. On April 23, 2026, OES received notification of the application due date of April 30, 2026. Cal OES granted OES an extension for the application submission to June 9, 2026, to allow Board of Supervisors (Board) approval to apply.
HSGP
The HSGP, which is also overseen by FEMA, was established to strengthen the nation’s homeland preparedness in relation to terrorism following the September 11, 2001 terror attacks. This program allows the OA to continue its efforts in preventing, preparing for, protecting against, and responding to acts of terrorism. OES has been receiving HSGP funds annually to assist with this purpose since the onset of the program.
Proposed projects for the FY 2025 HSGP funding were collected by OES from participating OA jurisdictions and subsequently approved by the OA’s Approval Authority on February 4, 2025. The Approval Authority is an Anti-Terrorism Approval Body that provides approval of the OA’s grant application for HSGP funds, as a requirement of the grant. The Approval Authority consists of the following representatives: County Public Health Officer, County Fire Chief/Fire Warden, County Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator, a Municipal Fire Chief, and a Chief of Police. Eligible projects for grant funding include equipment, planning, organization, exercise, and training costs related to preparedness efforts. The FY 2025 HSGP performance period is from September 1, 2025 through June 30, 2028. This grant is retroactive annually. Cal OES notified OES on May 4, 2026 that application documents are available for submission with no specific due date.
Pursuant to County Policy 05-13, Board approval is required to authorize the designated Authorized Agents listed on Resolution No. 2025-10, which was adopted by the Board on January 14, 2025 (Item No. 30), to execute and submit the applications for current and future grant programs for three consecutive years. Resolution No. 2025-10 listed the authorized agents for the Fiscal Year 2024, Fiscal Year 2025, and Fiscal Year 2026 EMPG and Fiscal Year 2024, Fiscal Year 2025, and Fiscal Year 2026 HSGP programs, which is recommended by Cal OES to streamline grant document submittal processes. Once approved, OES will return to the Board to accept the funds for the FY 2025 EMPG and the FY 2025 HSGP funds.
PROCUREMENT
Not applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Grace B. Parsons, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on May 11, 2026; and County Finance and Administration (Carl Lofton, Administrative Analyst, 387-5404) on May 22, 2026.