Public Accountability Report

The Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security (IEMA-OHS) is the lead coordinating agency for all emergencies and disasters in the State of Illinois and its primary responsibility is to better prepare the state for natural, manmade or technological disasters, hazards, or acts of terrorism.

• Fiscal: During Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25), the agency oversaw $445 million in spending, of which $22.1 million was for the work tied to the agency’s disaster response / recovery and approximately $355 million was for Federal Grant monies for State, local and non-profit entities.  The agency recouped $62.6 million of its current and previous fiscal year disaster expenses through FEMA’s Public Assistance Grants Program. 
• Logistics IEMA-OHS has made significant progress in reducing expired inventory of expired supplies and unneeded equipment from the pandemic response. The agency also invested in a phased upgrade of our state vehicle fleet in accordance with CMS guidance.
• Emergency Response: In FY25, Illinois experienced seven SBA disaster declarations, including severe storms, tornadoes, fires in apartment complexes, flooding, and a water main break. Two federal presidential disaster declarations for individual assistance are pending for storms and flash flooding in late July and mid-August, affecting multiple counties including Cook and Chicago.
• Recovery: Overall, the Recovery Division has strived to maximize federal support to strengthen state and local resilience across Illinois. In FY25, with a record-breaking season of over 163 tornadoes, Recovery provided technical expertise and coordination to assist many local communities and counties in their local recovery efforts. Recovery also coordinated the Major Presidential Federal Declaration through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) (DR-4819) in seven counties, both rural and urban, and delivered over $190 million in aid to over 43,000 disaster survivors. In addition, Recovery was able to assist in securing seven U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Declarations for fires, flooding, severe storms, and a water main break. In Hazard Mitigation, we executed 15 projects totaling $11.3 million, secured three sub-awards totaling $4.3 million, closed out Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) 1935 totaling $46 million, and received our FEMA one-year lock-in for HMGP for $25.8 million.
• Operations: In 2025, IEMA-OHS coordinated the deployment of MABAS Task Force 1 to Texas under EMAC to assist with catastrophic flooding, providing Urban Search and Rescue support from July 11–26. State operations contributed to both immediate response and long-term recovery efforts throughout the event.
• Combating School Violence: IEMA-OHS oversaw state and federal grant programs throughout FY25 to enhance emergency response capabilities, strengthen cybersecurity, support faith-based and nonprofit organizations, and fund infrastructure upgrades and major event preparedness.
• Office of Nuclear Safety: In FY25, the agency advanced public safety through stronger nuclear oversight, expanded emergency preparedness, and modernized regulatory programs. The Office of Nuclear Safety completed 569 licensing actions—260% faster than federal benchmarks—and resolved 58 radiological incidents, while occupational exposures and sewer-disposal concentrations were cut in half. Radiological Emergency Preparedness awarded $650,000 in grants, trained over 1,400 responders and staff, and participated in multiple nuclear exercises. Major projects included upgrading remote monitoring systems, replacing key lab equipment, and deploying new mobile detection units to enhance radiological response.
• Homeland Security: Illinois successfully implemented the Statewide Interoperability Template (SWIT) in 2025, enhancing emergency communications across the state. The SWIT modernizes the legacy ITTF Template by incorporating new and existing StarCom21 Talkgroups and updating conventional channels to include all National and Federal Interoperability Channels. The deployment demonstrates Illinois’ continued commitment to public safety and alignment with DHS grant requirements.
• Grants Administration: IEMA-OHS managed approximately $456 million in state and federal grants to support emergency response, faith-based and nonprofit organizations, cybersecurity, infrastructure improvements, and major events like Lollapalooza, NASCAR Chicago Street Race, Chicago Marathon, and Navy Pier 4^th of July celebration.
• Joint Information Center (JIC): The agency conducted multiple exercises with key stakeholders, agency heads, and emergency managers to enhance preparedness for emergency incidents and Joint Information Center (JIC) activation in case of response to statewide disasters and National Special Security Events, ensuring effective critical messaging and information dissemination during disaster response and recovery.