County Of El Paso

County of El Paso, a U.S. local government entity headquartered in El Paso, Texas, operates as a federal grant recipient delivering criminal justice, public health, transportation, and infrastructure services across the southwest border region. The county acts as a direct grant recipient from federal law enforcement, transportation, environmental, and economic development programs — not as a federal contractor — with 52% of its 189 awards held as prime grants and 48% as sub-recipient agreements under state and federal prime grantees.

The county's federal grant portfolio concentrates heavily in criminal justice and public safety. The Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance leads by award count with 35 grants, followed by the Executive Office of the President's Office of the National Drug Control Policy with 18 awards, and the DOJ's Office of Justice Programs Victims of Crime unit with 16 awards. These three agencies account for roughly 48% of recent awards. The criminal justice and victim services work includes a $750,000 Veterans Treatment Court Discretionary Grant awarded October 1, 2022 (extending through September 30, 2026) to enhance the 346th El Paso Veterans Treatment Court Program; a $460,000 Office on Violence Against Women Enhancing Investigations and Prosecution award from October 1, 2024 (through September 30, 2027) supporting domestic violence prosecution and victim advocacy; and a $700,000 Local Law Enforcement Grants for Enforcement of Cybercrimes Program award effective May 1, 2026 (through April 30, 2029) addressing technology-facilitated abuse, sextortion, stalking, and non-consensual distribution of intimate images.

Transportation and infrastructure grants form a secondary capability cluster. The county acts as a sub-recipient of Texas Department of Transportation funding for rural transit operations, electric vehicle procurement and charging infrastructure, bus shelter construction, and transit facility design across a multi-county service area. EPA Region 6 has awarded three cooperative agreements totaling $3.88 million for wastewater collection system design and potable water main design serving unincorporated colonias, with beneficiaries ranging from 81 to 2,000 residents. The Department of Housing and Urban Development's Community Planning and Development office has issued at least two economic development initiative and congressionally directed spending grants with performance periods extending through 2032.

A third focus area centers on drug enforcement and border security. The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Program (Office of the National Drug Control Policy) has generated recurring HIDTA project grants, including a $1.454 million two-year award effective January 1, 2022 (through December 31, 2023) supporting law enforcement cooperation to dismantle and disrupt drug trafficking organizations. Operation Stonegarden grants (Department of Homeland Security) fund high-visibility law enforcement enforcement presence and overtime across multiple county constable precincts to detect, deter, and interdict criminal and terrorist activity along the U.S.-Mexico border corridor.

Recent activity has grown substantially — from 16 awards in 2022 to 39 in 2024 — with a slight decline to 28 awards in 2025. Nine awards carrying ultimate completion dates in the next twenty-four months face recompete or continuation decision points. The county's combined obligated dollars across all awards ($196.9 million) exceed the combined potential value figure, reflecting a mix of mature awards with invoiced/obligated activity and newer awards with ceiling values. Sub-award concentration reflects the county's role as a pass-through administrator for state victims services, transportation planning, and emergency management funding, with notable sub-recipient relationships under Texas Governor's Office, Texas Attorney General, Texas Division of Emergency Management, and Texas Department of Transportation prime grants. The county serves a population of 868,763 (ninth-most populous Texas county, per 2022 census) with a 19.5% poverty rate and nearly 65% designation as Justice40 disadvantaged community.