GAO Draft: $1.8 Billion in DHS Prevention Grants Lack Auditable Metrics, Renewals Face House Vote January 22

Pending Renewals for Grants Already Flagged by Auditors

The Department of Homeland Security is preparing to renew $1.8 billion in violence prevention grants despite a pending Government Accountability Office finding that the programs lack auditable spending metrics, according to two congressional appropriators familiar with the draft report. The grants, administered by DHS's Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, are scheduled for automatic renewal on January 22 unless the House Appropriations Committee acts by January 21, the officials said.

The draft GAO report, titled "Federal Grants for Targeted Violence Prevention: DHS Lacks Reliable Performance Data," identifies 14 active grant agreements that were originally awarded under emergency authorities in 2021 and later converted to recurring appropriations, a GAO investigator with direct knowledge of the review told The Alamo Post. The investigator said the report is scheduled for public release on January 22, three business days after the renewal deadline, which has frustrated staff on both sides of the Appropriations Committee.

According to the draft, grant recipients include a $412 million contract with a nonprofit consortium based in Chicago, a $298 million award to a university research network in California, and a $156 million agreement with a state homeland security office in New York. The GAO investigator said auditors could not locate current performance evaluations for nine of the 14 recipients, and that three recipients had not filed required quarterly reports since March 2025.

The same investigator said the report also found that DHS had paid $47 million in administrative fees to a single contractor that managed subawards across six programs, even though the contractor's own audit disclosed internal control weaknesses in September 2025. The contractor, which has offices in Arlington, Virginia, received the fees through a blanket purchase agreement that does not expire until September 2026, the investigator said.

OMB Review Began in December but Slowed Over Holiday Recess

A budget analyst at the Office of Management and Budget said the review of the renewal package began on December 4, 2025, when the House Appropriations homeland security subcommittee requested a hold on automatic execution. The analyst, who was not authorized to speak publicly, said OMB staff concluded by December 18 that the renewal was legally permissible but recommended that DHS provide updated performance data before funds were obligated. The recommendation was not binding, and DHS proceeded to prepare renewal documents during the congressional recess, the analyst said.

The two congressional appropriators said staff for the subcommittee chairman have scheduled a closed briefing for January 20 to review the GAO findings before a possible markup on January 21. The markup, if it occurs, would be the first attempt by the Republican-led subcommittee to block an automatic renewal since the 118th Congress changed execution rules for homeland security grants in 2024, one of the appropriators said.

The second appropriator said the automatic renewal mechanism was created in the fiscal year 2024 omnibus spending law to prevent lapses in local training programs, but that the provision was never intended to cover grants that lacked verified performance data. The appropriator said the subcommittee plans to request that DHS certify each recipient's compliance with reporting requirements before any January 22 funds are released.

The budget analyst at OMB said the administration's position is that the renewal language in the 2024 law does not give the committee authority to block individual grants once the overall account has been appropriated. The analyst said OMB is prepared to issue a statement on January 19 defending the legal basis for the renewal if the committee moves forward with the markup.

What to Watch in the Next 72 Hours

The central question over the weekend is whether House leadership will allow the January 21 markup to proceed or defer to the administration's argument that the renewals are necessary to maintain local law enforcement partnerships. The second congressional appropriator said Senate counterparts have not yet agreed to companion language, meaning any House action would be largely symbolic unless Senate majority leadership support emerges by January 23.

Watch for three developments by January 20: a potential DHS statement defending the grant metrics, the closed subcommittee briefing at 10 a.m. in the Capitol Visitor Center, and any filings from the inspector general for homeland security. The GAO investigator said the report will be sent to the committee on January 19 under embargo, giving members roughly 48 hours to prepare questions before the public release.

The dispute also has implications for the fiscal year 2026 appropriations process, which is scheduled to begin in earnest when Congress returns from recess on January 20. One of the congressional appropriators said the homeland security subcommittee is likely to include new reporting requirements in the 2026 bill, regardless of the outcome of the January 21 markup. The Alamo Post will continue to follow the renewal vote and the GAO report release as the story develops.