Islamist groups in Texas rake in $13M in taxpayer-funded grants amid Abbott’s battle against Sharia law

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has taken aggressive action this week against Sharia law, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Yet critics are demanding to know why, during his time in office, millions in taxpayer-funded grants have been allocated to alleged Islamist organizations based in Texas.

Abbott announced on Tuesday that he had designated the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR as foreign terrorist and transnational criminal organizations. The following day, Abbott urged local district attorneys to investigate potential Sharia “courts” operating in Texas and defying state and federal laws to push Islamic codes.

‘Unlike the previous administration, recipients of grants will no longer be permitted to use federal funds to … empower radical organizations with unseemly ties that don’t serve the interest of the American people.’

Despite Abbott’s recent actions, some have faulted the governor for allowing taxpayer dollars to be used to fund the uptick in Islamic mosques in Texas, citing a June report from the Middle East Forum. The article claimed Texas gave “over $13 million of federal and state monies to mosques and community groups aligned with Islamist movements such as Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Jamaat-e-Islami, as well as hostile foreign regimes.”

Of the 18 organizations that received funds, a dozen were said to have “extremist links.”

“While a few thousand dollars in the state government’s data consists of the return of escheated funds, the vast majority of the millions spent appear to be the result of direct state grants, subsidy programs, and federal sub-awards managed by the Texas state government,” the Middle East Forum wrote.

The Texas governor’s office told Blaze News that the funding referenced in the Middle East Forum’s report was not state tax dollars but rather federal funds distributed by the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program.

As part of that program, since 2016, roughly $63 million in federal funds have passed through Texas to nonprofit organizations, including $55 million to churches and synagogues, and a smaller portion went to mosques, according to Abbott’s office.

RELATED: Secret Sharia ‘courts’ in Texas may be quietly overriding state law — Abbott calls for investigation

Photo by RONALDO SCHEMIDT/AFP via Getty Images

The governor’s office contended that organization-vetting for this DHS and FEMA grant program is performed by these federal agencies, not by the state.

Sam Westrop, the director of Islamist Watch and the author of the Middle East Forum report, disputed this claim, arguing that the state was responsible for screening these grant applications and had the authority to exclude applicants.

Westrop told Blaze News that “only a small number” of the $13 million came from the DHS’ Nonprofit Security Grant Program.

“However, many of the grants we identified, while not all from DHS, were in fact paid for from federal funds; and are thus subawards,” Westrop stated. “But by serving as the primary grantee, the Texas state government is required by the federal government to vet and assess risk. Subawards are discretionary, and the primary grantee may exclude a subawardee.”

“So these grants may be financed by federal dollars, but the monies are distributed through and at the discretion of the Texas state government, much by the governor’s office itself,” Westrop added.

The Nonprofit Security Grant Program seeks to provide financial support to nonprofit organizations that are considered “high risk” of a terrorist attack. These nonprofits can include places of worship, educational facilities, and medical facilities, among other 501(c)(3) organizations. The funds are intended to support security enhancements, such as installing cameras, alarms, and fences. The grant can also be used toward security planning and training, as well as cybersecurity.

RELATED: No Sharia law in Texas: Abbott draws a hard line against radical Islam

Photo by Ilana Panich-Linsman for The Washington Post via Getty Images

According to FEMA, the State Administrative Agency in each state is “the only eligible applicant” for this grant and “responsible for handling the federal award.” Therefore, churches and other places of worship seeking funds through the Nonprofit Security Grant Program are “subapplicants that must apply through the SAA in the state or territory where the applying facility is physically located.” The nonprofits cannot apply directly to FEMA.

The applications are first “scored by the SAA in coordination with its state.” Then the SAA submits “a prioritized list of [investment justifications] with all scores to FEMA.”

FEMA notes that a facility’s local SAA may have its own requirements to apply for the grant. Texas’ SAA contact is the Homeland Security Grants Division under the Texas Office of the Governor.

These now-archived grant opportunities from Texas’ eGrants website state that the “Office of the Governor will screen all applications to ensure that they meet the requirements included in the funding announcement.” However, it notes that FEMA “makes final funding decisions.”

While it remains disputed whether Texas could have blocked these grants from going to alleged Islamist organizations, FEMA has made it clear that the DHS, under Secretary Kristi Noem, has significantly increased the vetting at the federal level.

“Under Secretary Noem’s leadership, FEMA conducted a critical evaluation of all grant programs and recipients to root out waste, fraud, and abuse and deliver accountability for the American taxpayer,” a FEMA spokesperson told Blaze News. “For Fiscal Year 2025 grant awards, DHS and FEMA worked together to vet grant recipients and ensure that every dollar spent strengthens the nation’s resilience.”

“Unlike the previous administration, recipients of grants will no longer be permitted to use federal funds to house illegal immigrants at luxury hotels, fund climate change pet projects, or empower radical organizations with unseemly ties that don’t serve the interest of the American people,” the spokesperson added.

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