Security grants in Nebraska: federal NSGP through NEMA, and a state program with no money

Status on October 16, 2026

The Nebraska Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) is the State Administrative Agency (SAA) for FEMA's Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP). Its grants page says NEMA applies each year on Nebraska's behalf. NEMA also runs the state-funded Nebraska Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NE-NSGP). General grant questions go to nema.grants@nebraska.gov or 402-471-7421.

Federal NSGP through NEMA

The NEMA grants page holds only a short description of NSGP. It has no FY2026 notice, deadline or forms. We read the first three pages of the NEMA newsroom, which run from 2021 to October 16, 2026, and found no FY2026 NSGP notice. The most recent federal NSGP notice there is dated April 19, 2024.

We can't tell from public sources whether NEMA set an FY2026 deadline for nonprofits, or how it took applications. FEMA's own deadline for SAAs was July 24, 2026 in the FY2026 NOFO, later moved to 5 p.m. ET on July 31, 2026 (Information Bulletin 579). State deadlines for nonprofits come earlier than FEMA's. Other states' dates are on NSGP deadlines.

The FY2024 notice, for pattern only

NEMA's FY2024 notice is the latest public description of its process. It doesn't prove the FY2026 or FY2027 process, but it shows what NEMA asked for before:

• Released April 19, 2024, with applications due May 17, 2024 at 5 p.m., by email to nema.grants@nebraska.gov.
• Three required documents: the Investment Justification (IJ), a vulnerability or risk assessment, and the mission statement.
• Applicants "should" obtain a Unique Entity ID (UEI) at once.
• Missing items meant "elimination from grant consideration."

The FY2026 NOFO also says subapplicants "must submit short bios and resumes" for leaders and board members, which the FY2024 notice didn't list. Check each year's NOFO, because the federal list can change. The how-to-apply guide covers SAM.gov, the UEI and the federal document list.

One stream for every site

Nebraska has no FEMA-designated urban area in FY2026 Appendix B, so every Nebraska site applies under NSGP-S. NEMA's FY2024 notice also said Nebraska can apply for NSGP-S only. Nebraska's FY2026 total federal allocation is $2,250,000 (NOFO, Appendix C). That total includes up to 5% NEMA may keep for management and administration (M&A); the amount for nonprofit projects is $2,137,500. The state lookup table uses the same total-allocation basis.

In FY2026 an organization could request up to $200,000 per site for up to three sites, with a $600,000 limit in Nebraska. The NSGP program guide explains eligibility and scoring nationally. We found no NEMA statement on how it pays NSGP subawards. A selected organization should ask, and should not sign contracts before its subaward is signed; see after the award.

The Nebraska Nonprofit Security Grant Program

NE-NSGP rests on Neb. Rev. Stat. 81-829.07 (definitions) and 81-829.08 (the program), enacted in 2024 through LB1300. The statute lets NEMA award "up to five hundred thousand dollars in grants per year," starting January 1, 2025.

Why it has no money

At the February 17, 2026 Appropriations Committee hearing, the bill's sponsor said the 2024 law had appropriated $500,000 a year, that "we kept the program but struck the funding," and that the program "operated for one year." LB989 would have restored General Fund money for fiscal year 2026-27. It was introduced January 13, 2026, heard February 17, and indefinitely postponed on April 17, 2026 (LB989 actions).

So the statute remains, but nothing pays for a round. NEMA's newsroom shows no NE-NSGP item newer than January 6, 2025. We won't guess when, or whether, a round returns.

How the 2025 round worked

NEMA's January 6, 2025 notice describes the only round. These rules come from that notice and the statute. A future round could change them if funding returns.

• Who qualified. A 501(c)(3) organization at high risk of terrorist attack, or of hate crimes or attacks because of its ideology, beliefs or mission. It also had to meet one of three tests: it applied for federal NSGP and wasn't funded that year, it was unable to apply, or it had a documented barrier or hardship. Hospitals, rural emergency hospitals and postsecondary institutions were excluded.
• Who was barred. An organization that received a federal nonprofit security grant in the previous five years, or that received its full NE-NSGP request the year before.
• Priority. Applicants with no federal NSGP money, and nonprofits that couldn't apply for federal funds and received none in the last three cycles.
• Limits. $50,000 per nonprofit per year, from a first-year pool of "up to $411,000."
• Uses. Target hardening and security projects that fix vulnerabilities found in an assessment: doors, gates, lighting, alarms, cameras, access control, planning, training and exercises. The notice barred equipment for contracted security personnel.
• Application. By email to nema.nsgp@nebraska.gov: the NE-NSGP application, site photos, and a site-specific vulnerability assessment. A UEI was needed. The statute lets NEMA accept a federal NSGP application in place of the state form.
• Dates and payment. Due January 31, 2025 at 5 p.m. CST; period of performance March 1, 2025 to February 28, 2026, with no extensions. Payment was by reimbursement, for costs inside the period only, with final requests due 20 calendar days after the grant ended.

The statute lists "security personnel" as an eligible cost, but the 2025 notice didn't list contract guards and barred equipment for them. Don't plan on NE-NSGP for guards without NEMA's written answer. At the 2026 hearing the sponsor said 10 of 13 applicants were approved in that round and that not all funds were awarded.

Federal winners can't use it

The five-year bar is the rule that matters most. A Nebraska organization that won federal NSGP in the last five years can't use NE-NSGP even if funding returns. For everyone else, the program was built for nonprofits FEMA didn't fund or that couldn't apply. Right now the federal NSGP-S is the only live route.

Schools, congregations and local programs

We found no other statewide Nebraska program in scope. A limited search found no county or city program for Omaha, Lincoln or Douglas County. A nonprofit private or religious school may fit NSGP; see private and religious school security grants. NE-NSGP excludes postsecondary institutions, not elementary or secondary schools. Congregations will find their federal options in the church, synagogue and mosque guides.

Programs compared

Official documents

If NEMA issues a newer notice, form or instruction than these, the newer document controls.

Last checked and change log

Last checked: October 16, 2026, against the NEMA grants page, newsroom pages 1 to 3, the FY2024 NSGP notice and the January 2025 NE-NSGP notice; Neb. Rev. Stat. 81-829.07 and 81-829.08; LB989's actions page, statement of intent and February 17, 2026 hearing transcript; and FEMA's FY2026 NOFO, Information Bulletin 579 and September 28, 2026 announcement.

• October 2026: Page published. No FY2026 Nebraska NSGP notice or deadline found on NEMA's site. NE-NSGP remains in statute without funding; LB989 indefinitely postponed April 17, 2026.