A group of Democrats from Colorado’s congressional delegation wrote to Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem raising questions about the implementation and execution of the Nonprofit Security Grant Program.

“In light of the recent surge in anti-Semitic, Islamophobic, and other violent hate-based incidents in the United States, the importance of this program cannot be overstated,” the letter reads. “We urge DHS and FEMA to do more to ensure NSGP allows nonprofits and religious organizations to better protect the people they serve. All Americans deserve to visit their places of worship, schools, and community centers freely and without fear.”

The letter specifically focuses on gaps in executing the Nonprofit Security Grant Program Improvement Act, passed in 2022, which directed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to establish a dedicated office to administer the NSGP and provide expanded assistance to potential applicants.

The letter notes that there has been no announcement that such an office has been established, and requests information about whether such action has taken place and, if so, “to what extent it is appropriately staffed to carry out the duties outlined.”

The letter also raises concerns about the “lack of standardization of application deadlines” among the various state agencies that manage applications from individual nonprofit groups at the state level, another aim of the Improvement Act. 

“Implementing a standard deadline for all [state administrative agencies] and a set list of required documents would make the process significantly more efficient and less confusing for the organizations applying,” the letter reads. “In addition, we believe there should be increased transparency between FEMA and SAAs. FEMA should provide uniform guidance and feedback regarding both successful and unsuccessful applications. This increased communication would allow unsuccessful organizations to improve their applications.”

Though the letter does not directly address the issue, other lawmakers have raised concerns about the delayed opening and short application timeline for the NSGP this year, and accused the Department of Homeland Security of a range of issues in its handling of the grant program.

The letter also requests that FEMA change its policies to allow institutions to pay permanent security staff with the grants they receive, something they are unable to do under current guidelines; currently, institutions can only use grant funding to hire security contractors.

“While this has been helpful, at present, organizations cannot use funds from this program for permanent salaried employees or personnel expenses,” the lawmakers wrote. “This means that non-profits are reliant on contracting outside security vendors, which can be unpredictable and hard to hire when needed.”

The letter was led by Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) and co-signed by Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) and Reps. Joe Neguse (D-CO), Diana DeGette (D-CO), Brittany Pettersen (D-CO) and Jason Crow (D-CO).