FEMA sued over hold on funds for upgrading nation's emergency alert system

Source: AP

Updated 6:44 PM EDT, March 13, 2025


WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government’s steward of funding for public broadcasting stations sued the Trump administration on Thursday over its pause in grant payments for upgrading the nation’s emergency alert system. The nonprofit Corporation for Public Broadcasting’s federal lawsuit says a recent hold on grant funds for modernizing the alert system hampers the ability of federal, state and local authorities to issue real-time emergency alerts.

The CPB sued the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Washington, D.C., to challenge its Feb. 18 hold on the $40 million grant program for the Next Generation Warning System. FEMA didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment on the lawsuit’s allegations. The suit says FEMA hasn’t attempted to explain a basis for suspending the grant payments.

The national Emergency Alert System helps government officials issue alerts about disasters, including flash floods, blizzards, tornados and hurricanes.

The CPB, which Congress created in 1967, is the largest source of funding for public radio and television. The private corporation says it distributes over 70% of its funding to more than 1,500 public radio and television stations.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/corporation-for-public-broadcasting-fema-lawsuit-emergency-alerts-2f79c5df5dd87b28d95d559f081d4e47