Metro Nashville joined a lawsuit on Monday against the federal government for withholding millions of dollars in funds unless it implements election-related policies.
Metro Nashville, along with Harris County, Texas; El Paso County, Texas; and the City of Columbus, Ohio, filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, alleging the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is using homeland security funding to require states and local governments to change how they administer elections.
The lawsuit claims more than $200 million is being withheld nationwide in homeland security grants because state and local governments have not implemented new election administration conditions.
According to the lawsuit, the federal government is withholding 20% of homeland security funding unless recipients implement five election-related requirements.
The five requirements include using hand-marked paper ballots, conducting a manual audit of at least 5% of ballots after elections, reconciling voters with ballots, verifying voter citizenship, and confirming election workers’ citizenship.
In 2026, the federal government was slated to give $3.8 million to Metro Nashville, but the local government has not received an estimated $757,147 of the funding because it has not implemented the election-related requirements.
Tyler Yarbro, Metro’s director of law, said the lawsuit attempts to “secure necessary funding that would provide equipment and training to Nashville’s first responders in handling emergency or terrorist events in our city.”
“The Trump administration wants to withhold those funds unless we implement wholly unnecessary and costly changes to our election procedures,” Yarbro noted.
“Courts have consistently rejected the administration’s efforts to meddle in elections. We are proud to join other cities and counties across the country to ensure that our access to federal funds designated for first responders is protected,” she added.
In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs argue FEMA is acting beyond its congressionally approved authority. They also claim Congress controls federal spending and that homeland security funding does not attach election-related conditions.
The plaintiffs say no federal or constitutional statute authorizes FEMA to impose election-related requirements for funding.
These requirements fail to meet the conditions placed on federal grants to states, according to the lawsuit.
The plaintiffs say the federal grants must be imposed clearly by Congress, reasonably related to the federal program’s purpose, and not make states have no choice but to comply.
Furthermore, the plaintiffs say the U.S. Constitution gives Congress and states authority over election administration rather than FEMA. They specifically cite the Constitution’s Elections Clause.
The plaintiffs challenge FEMA’s reasoning to issue these rules under the Administrative Procedure Act, which “governs the procedures of administrative law,” according to Cornell Law School.
They claim FEMA’s reasoning did not explain how these election requirements advanced homeland security or why they were necessary, and it failed to consider the fiscal impact on state and local governments and the consequences of withholding the money.
Plaintiffs are asking a federal judge in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia to declare the election-related requirements unlawful and prevent FEMA from withholding the federal funds.
– – –
Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network. Email tips to Zachery at [email protected].
Photo “People Voting” by Lorie Shaull. CC BY 4.0.
