New York joins multistate lawsuit after Trump administration's FEMA cuts
New York Attorney General Letitia James announced in a press release that her state has joined 19 others in litigation against Federal Emergency Management Agency chief David Richardson, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and the federal government that seeks the restoration of FEMA's Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities, or BRIC, program.
"I'm suing the federal government with a group of [Attorneys General] over its deadly decision to end FEMA's BRIC program and slash billions of dollars that protect communities from natural disasters," James wrote in an X post Wednesday.
According to the release, BRIC had "supported critical infrastructure to protect communities from disasters before they happen" with the provision of billions of dollars to state and local governments in order for municipalities to prepare for natural disasters.
In a press release that has since been deleted from the FEMA website, FEMA announced in April it was ending BRIC, and canceled all applications sent to BRIC from Fiscal Years 2020-2023, then canceled the fiscal year 2024 notice of funding opportunity. Any grant funds that hadn't been distributed were reabsorbed and returned to either the U.S. Treasury or the Disaster Relief Fund.
The dissolution of BRIC followed an Executive Order made in March that, among other decrees, ordered the Secretary of Homeland Security to "propose changes to the policies" related to "national preparedness and response policies and recommend to the President the revisions, recissions, and replacements necessary to reformulate the process and metrics for Federal responsibility."
The statement from James noted that the loss of the BRIC program could specifically affect New York, which is noted as being "among the states receiving the most BRIC funding" due to its coastal communities.
New York currently has 38 BRIC projects that total over $380 million located across its boundaries, which would be jeopardized by the termination of BRIC.
New York City alone was expected to receive BRIC funds for almost 20 different projects, including a $50 million mitigation action plan intended to provide protection from flash flooding of the Harlem River.
"This administration's decision to slash billions of dollars that protect our communities from floods, wildfires, and other disasters puts millions of New Yorkers at risk," said Attorney General James in the Wednesday press release from her office.
"New Yorkers depend on quality roads, floodwalls, and other vital infrastructure to keep them safe when disaster strikes," she continued. "This administration has no authority to cut this program that has helped save countless lives, and I will continue to fight to ensure New York gets the support we need to prepare for dangerous natural disasters."
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