NERIS Grant Funding Requirements: Which States Have Tied the Two Together So Far
Picture this: your grant application is nearly finished, the equipment your crew has needed for two budget cycles is finally within reach, and then one line in the eligibility section stops you cold. “Department must be current on NERIS reporting.”
That line is showing up in more places than it did a year ago. As states catch up to the NFIRS-to-NERIS transition, a growing number are connecting NERIS grant funding to whether your department is actually reporting incidents through the new system. Some have written it into state grant policy. Some folded it into existing statute. Others are simply restating a federal rule that has been on the books for years.
This article walks through what we know so far about which states have required or cited NERIS reporting in their grant funding, starting with the federal rule that sits underneath all of it. One thing to say up front, Chief: this is not a complete list. New legislation and policy updates are landing constantly, so treat what follows as a snapshot, not the final word.
A note before the list: The states below are the ones with public, verifiable NERIS-and-funding language as of mid-2026. Several more have statute updates in progress. If your state isn’t here, that doesn’t mean you’re off the hook. It means you should check your own state fire marshal’s guidance directly.
Why does NERIS reporting affect grant funding in the first place?
Because the link between incident reporting and grant money isn’t new. It predates NERIS by decades. NERIS just inherited it.
The federal anchor is the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program. Under 44 CFR Part 152, departments that receive AFG money have to provide incident data to the U.S. Fire Administration’s reporting system for the grant’s period of performance. Departments that aren’t already reporting when they get the award have to begin within twelve months and stand up reporting capacity before the one-year performance period ends. With NFIRS retired as of January 2026, that obligation now points to NERIS.
Here’s why that matters for reading everything below: most of what you’ll find on state fire marshal websites about “NERIS and funding” is really relaying this federal rule. It’s the common ancestor of nearly every state policy on this page. If your department takes AFG or other FEMA grant money, NERIS reporting is already part of the deal, no matter what your state has decided on its own.
Which states have tied their own grant funding to NERIS?
A handful of states have gone past the federal rule and conditioned their own grant dollars on NERIS reporting. Virginia and New York are the clearest examples, with Pennsylvania and Nebraska close behind.
- Virginia. Effective July 1, 2026, localities must ensure that fire departments receiving Aid to Localities (ATL) funding are reporting incidents through NERIS to stay eligible. The requirement traces back to legislation the General Assembly adopted in 2025, and the Virginia Fire Services Board formally adopted the reporting policy in December 2025. Virginia also stood up a Fire Incident Reporting Grant of up to $10,000 per department to help cover reporting hardware, initial software costs, and internet connectivity. (Background from VACo.)
- New York. New York ties NERIS status to more than one funding stream. To be eligible for an award under the V-FIRE grant program, all fire departments must be current on their NFIRS and/or NERIS reporting through the Office of Fire Prevention and Control. The state’s Volunteer Firefighter Training Stipend Program carries the same condition. On top of that, onboarding to NERIS is mandatory for all New York fire departments under General Municipal Law 204-d.
- Pennsylvania. The Office of the State Fire Commissioner states plainly that departments are required to log incident reports to meet eligibility for certain Commonwealth grants, and that all Pennsylvania fire departments must be registered with NERIS. (PennFIRS / incident reporting page.)
- Nebraska. Nebraska frames it through both statute and the federal hook. State Statute §81-506 requires all fire departments to report the details of fires, and the State Fire Marshal has designated NERIS as the official platform to meet that requirement. Reporting is also a condition for departments that receive federal grant awards.
Which states have made NERIS reporting mandatory or the official standard?
Some states have made NERIS reporting mandatory or adopted it as their official reporting standard, even where the grant connection is less explicitly spelled out.
Kansas. The State Fire Marshal says reporting into NERIS will be mandatory, and that Kansas state statute is being updated to account for NERIS. The same guidance notes that most grants require a department to be compliant with reporting before grant money is awarded. So the statutory hook is in progress rather than finalized, which is worth watching if you operate in Kansas.
Georgia. The Office of the Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire adopted NERIS as of January 1, 2026 as the standard for the Georgia Fire Incident Reporting System (GFIRS). That’s adoption as the reporting standard rather than a spelled-out grant condition, but in practice it means Georgia departments are now on NERIS.
Where does the grant connection show up but stay less explicit?
In several states, NERIS and funding are clearly linked, but the language stops short of a hard state grant condition. Often it’s the federal AFG rule restated in state terms.
North Carolina. The Office of State Fire Marshal describes NERIS as voluntary, but notes that departments receiving AFG funding must agree to provide information to NERIS for the grant’s performance period, beginning January 1, 2026. That’s the federal rule, not a separate state condition.
Texas. The Texas Department of Insurance says NERIS participation isn’t state-mandated, but that many funding and grant opportunities require it, including all FEMA grants administered through the U.S. Fire Administration. If a grantee stops reporting during the performance period, the award can be changed or withdrawn.
West Virginia. The State Fire Marshal has made its website the central hub for NERIS updates and routes notifications to the email addresses on file from funding applications, which links funding and reporting in practice. Separately, West Virginia Code §15A-11-11 already makes a fire company ineligible for Fire Service Equipment and Training grant funds when it falls out of com
What about states taking a different path?
Not every state is pushing departments straight onto NERIS. Ohio is the clearest counterexample.
Ohio’s State Fire Marshal has determined that departments will keep reporting on the NFIRS standard through the Ohio Fire Incident Reporting Management System (OFIRMS), even after NFIRS becomes non-federally-compliant on January 1, 2026. The Fire Safety Research Institute is aligning the NERIS schema with the fields Ohio already collects, with full implementation targeted for 2026 and official NERIS reporting expected to begin in 2027. In plain terms, Ohio inserted itself as the intermediary: departments report to the state, and the state handles the handoff to NERIS.
If you run calls in a state like Ohio, your path looks different from a department in Virginia or New York. That’s exactly why it pays to check your own state’s guidance instead of assuming the national picture applies to you.
What should your department do with all of this?
Two things: confirm where your state actually stands, and make sure your reporting is current before it turns into a funding problem. A few practical steps:
- Check your own state fire marshal or grant agency page directly. This article is a starting point, not a substitute for your state’s current guidance.
- If you take AFG or any FEMA grant money, treat NERIS reporting as already required. The federal rule applies regardless of what your state has decided.
- Confirm your RMS vendor is NERIS V1 certified and actually submitting your data. Reporting “compliance” means data landing in NERIS, not sitting in a queue somewhere. (RedAlert is NERIS V1 certified, so the submission infrastructure is already built.)
- Keep proof of reporting. Grant reviewers, and ISO, may ask for it.
- Watch for new legislation. Several states have statute updates moving right now, and the list of states with explicit funding ties is likely to grow.
This is a moving target. Because so many states are updating policy and statute at the same time, the map of who requires NERIS for funding is changing month to month. What’s accurate today may expand by your next grant cycle. When in doubt, go to the source: your state fire marshal’s office.
If you’re still getting your department set up, our NERIS onboarding guide walks through the process step by step, and what is NERIS covers the fundamentals if you’re earlier in the transition. For a look at the reporting workflow itself, the NERIS in RedAlert webinar shows it end to end.
Frequently Asked Questions About NERIS and Grant Funding
Does every state require NERIS reporting for grant funding? No. As of now, only some states have tied their own grant dollars to NERIS. Virginia, New York, Pennsylvania, and Nebraska are the clearest examples. Many other states are simply restating the federal AFG rule, and a few, like Ohio, are taking a different route entirely.
Is NERIS reporting required for federal AFG grants? Yes. Under 44 CFR Part 152, departments that receive Assistance to Firefighters Grant money must report incident data for the grant’s period of performance. With NFIRS retired, that reporting now happens through NERIS. This applies nationwide, no matter what your state has decided on its own.
Which states have the strongest NERIS grant funding requirements so far? Virginia and New York are the two most explicit. Virginia ties Aid to Localities funding to NERIS reporting as of July 1, 2026, and New York conditions both its V-FIRE grant and its Volunteer Firefighter Training Stipend on being current with reporting.
What happens if my department isn’t reporting to NERIS? It depends on your state and your funding sources. At minimum, if you receive federal AFG or FEMA grant money, falling behind on NERIS reporting can put that award at risk. In states like Virginia and New York, it can affect state grant eligibility too. The safest move is to keep reporting current and confirm your data is reaching NERIS.
Is this list of states complete? No. This is a snapshot of what’s publicly documented as of mid-2026. States are updating policy and statute constantly, and new legislation tying NERIS to funding is likely on the way. Always confirm the current rules with your own state fire marshal’s office.
If you’re navigating NERIS, you don’t have to figure it out alone. The RedAlert team has helped departments across the country stay ahead of it. Reach out anytime.
