Judge Rejects CPB’s Motion to Force FEMA to Keep Grant Portal Open.

A federal judge in Washington has denied the Corporation for Public Broadcasting’s request for a preliminary injunction that would have compelled the Federal Emergency Management Agency to keep a grant payment system open, dealing a setback to CPB’s legal effort to restore stability to a key emergency alert upgrade program.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly said CPB had failed to meet the legal standard for a preliminary injunction, including demonstrating that it would suffer irreparable harm if FEMA were allowed to again close access to the Payment and Reporting System. That is the reimbursement portal FEMA uses to disburse funds for the Next Generation Warning System (NGWS) grants.

The decision stems from CPB’s March lawsuit against FEMA, which followed multiple unexplained PARS shutdowns that left public broadcasting stations with millions in unreimbursed costs for equipment upgrades designed to modernize the national Emergency Alert System. FEMA has since reopened the portal, and the judge noted that CPB’s access remains intact, undermining the urgency of CPB’s request.

“CPB’s problem, if you can call it that, is that the PARS portal has been open for over a month,” Judge Kelly wrote. “To be sure, CPB has shown that FEMA’s handling of the portal earlier this year caused its sub-awardees to press pause on certain upgrades.” But he emphasized that a preliminary injunction is not intended to “remedy a past wrong” and that CPB has not shown that FEMA will likely close the portal again.

In its filings, CPB warned that FEMA’s “repeated” and “abrupt” shutdowns of the payment system had created such instability that subgrantees were reluctant to make further emergency alert system upgrades. CPB argued that FEMA’s conduct had endangered public safety, undermined CPB’s ability to carry out its mission, and damaged its reputation.

But Judge Kelly was unconvinced, writing that CPB’s claims of harm were either speculative, self-inflicted, or not severe enough to justify emergency judicial relief.

“FEMA restored CPB’s access to PARS in early June and has been reimbursing CPB for the expenses of sub-awardees since then. With the portal now open — and for over a month — CPB cannot show that the preliminary injunction it requests is necessary to avoid imminent irreparable harm,” Kelly wrote in the decision. The President Trump-appointed judge adds that CPB may want “stability and predictability.” But while “understandable,” Kelly says they are not sufficient to find there is a risk of irreparable harm to stations making upgrades.

The case will continue, with FEMA now required to file an answer to CPB’s complaint by July 22. The court has not yet ruled on the underlying claims that FEMA’s actions violated the Administrative Procedure Act.

CPB filed suit in March when FEMA put a hold on awarding grants to public broadcasters to implement and operate the Next Generation Warning System program. The program provides funding for media organizations to upgrade equipment and receive training to enhance alerting and warning capabilities, and prioritizes public media stations. CPB has alleged the funding was being unlawfully held up and local stations were due millions of dollars.

FEMA lawyers have said that the agency doesn’t have a hold on the money, and after a brief pause it has announced that grant funding was again flowing, with five recipients, including South Dakota Public Broadcasting, KSUT Ignacio, CO, PBS Wisconsin/Wisconsin Public Radio, and Louisiana Public Broadcasting getting more than $9 million in combined funding.

FEMA has awarded CPB $136 million to establish and implement the Next Generation Warning System grant program. CPB is administering a competitive grant program for public radio and television stations to replace and upgrade infrastructure to expand alert, warning, and interoperable communications, creating a more resilient and secure public alerting system. The program funds equipment upgrades and training that will result in enhanced alerting and warning capabilities. The program prioritizes public media stations serving underserved communities, primarily in rural areas.