About Grants & Training

The Office of Grants and Training (G&T) is responsible for providing training, funds for the purchase of equipment, support for the planning and execution of exercises, technical assistance and other support to assist states and local jurisdictions to prevent, respond to, and recover from acts of terrorism.

G&T achieves its mission by providing grants to states and local jurisdictions, providing hands-on training through a number of residential training facilities and in-service training at the local level, funding and working with state and local jurisdictions to plan and execute exercises, and providing technical assistance on-site to state and local jurisdictions.

G&T History

In the 1998 Appropriations Act (Public Law 105-119) and accompanying report, the Congress expressed its concern regarding the real and potentially catastrophic effects of a chemical or biological act of terrorism. Congress stated that, while the Federal Government plays an important role in preventing and responding to these types of threats, state and local public safety personnel are typically first to respond to the scene when such incidents occur. As a result, Congress authorized the Attorney General to assist state and local public safety personnel in acquiring the specialized training and equipment necessary to safely respond to and manage terrorist incidents involving weapons of mass destruction (WMD).

On April 30, 1998, the Attorney General delegated authority to the Justice Department's Office of Justice Programs (OJP) to develop and administer training and equipment assistance programs for state and local emergency response agencies to better prepare them against this threat. To execute this mission, the Office of Justice Programs established the Office for Domestic Preparedness (ODP) to develop and administer a national Domestic Preparedness Program.

Upon passage of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Pub. L. 107-296), the Office for Domestic Preparedness was transferred to the Department of Homeland Security from OJP. In 2003, a number of grant programs and functions from other DHS components were consolidated with ODP under a new DHS agency, the Office of State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness (SLGCP).

In 2005, SLGCP was incorporated under the Preparedness Directorate as the Office of Grants and Training (G&T).