Next generation warning system grant program

FEMA HQ Financial Assistance Awards awarded the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency $6,986,804.25 on October 1, 2025, under the Next Generation Warning System Grant Program (CFDA 97.138) to modernize Georgia's public alert and warning systems through advanced digital broadcast technologies and Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) implementation across multiple platforms.

The award funds modernization of Georgia's statewide public alert and warning infrastructure, focusing on deployment of current broadcast technology standards and CAP-enabled systems to reach traditionally underserved areas. The Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA/HS), a division of the State of Georgia Office of the Governor, serves as the prime recipient administering the award. The period of performance runs from October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2028, with place of performance in Atlanta, Georgia. The program's broader objective is to establish public alert and warning systems that provide timely and effective warnings using the latest broadcast technology standards, particularly serving areas traditionally underserved by broadcast providers. GEMA/HS functions as a high-volume FEMA grant recipient and pass-through entity, distributing sub-awards to local governments and other recipients throughout Georgia; the agency's customer concentration is heavily weighted toward FEMA programs, which account for over 220 of its 279 total awards across three decades.