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Business Standard
06-08-2025
- Politics
- Business Standard
US judge rules Trump admin cannot reallocate disaster relief funds
Noting money for the programme was allocated by Congress, the states' lawsuit says any attempt to redirect it would run afoul of the Constitution AP Boston A federal judge on Tuesday blocked the Trump administration from reallocating $4 billion meant to help communities protect against natural disasters. US District Judge Richard G Stearns in Boston granted a preliminary injunction sought by 20 Democrat-led states while their lawsuit over the funding moves ahead. The states argue the Federal Emergency Management Agency lacks the authority to end the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities programme and redirect more than $4 billion of its funding. The programme aims to harden infrastructure around the country against potential storm damage. FEMA initially announced it was ending the programme, but later said in a court filing that it was evaluating it. "Although the Government equivocates about whether it has, in fact, ended the BRIC programme, the States' evidence of steps taken by FEMA to implement the announced termination portend the conclusion that a determination has in fact been made and that FEMA is inching towards a fait accompli," Stearns wrote in his ruling. "The agency has cancelled new funding opportunities and informed stakeholders that they should no longer expect to obtain any unobligated funds." Noting money for the programme was allocated by Congress, the states' lawsuit says any attempt to redirect it would run afoul of the Constitution. A lawyer for the government, Nicole O'Connor, argued at a hearing in July that the funds can be used both for disaster recovery and disaster prevention and that FEMA should have discretion to use the money how it sees fit. The program has provided grants for a range of disaster management projects, including strengthening electrical grids, constructing levees for flood protection and relocating vulnerable water treatment facilities. Many of the projects are in rural communities. FEMA said in a news release in April that it was "ending" the programme, but the agency's acting chief, David Richardson, later said in a court filing that FEMA was merely evaluating whether to end or revise it. The states, including California, New York and Washington, argue that the threat of losing the funding alone has put numerous projects at risk of being cancelled, delayed or downsized. And they warn ending the programme would be highly imprudent. "By proactively fortifying our communities against disasters before they strike, rather than just responding afterward, we will reduce injuries, save lives, protect property, and, ultimately, save money that would otherwise be spent on post-disaster costs," they wrote in the suit filed in July. FEMA said in a court filing an injunction on its use of the funds could hamper its ability to respond to major disasters. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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Business Standard
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Business Standard
Judge rules Trump admin wrongly ended parole for hundreds of thousands
The decision is another legal setback for President Trump's plans for mass deportation, but it may prove temporary and its immediate impact was unclear AP Boston A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that the Donald Trump administration wrongly ended humanitarian parole for hundreds of thousands of people allowed to live in the United States temporarily. The decision is another legal setback for President Trump's plans for mass deportation, but it may prove temporary and its immediate impact was unclear. US District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston sided with people who were already admitted to the United States but were unable to renew their short-term permits. They cover parole policies that benefited Afghans, Ukrainians, Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, Venezuelans and children from Central American countries trying to join their parents in the US, among others. Talwani, who was appointed by then-president Barack Obama, said two orders by Department of Homeland Security officials to suspend renewals pending further review were unlikely to survive a legal challenge. One of the orders gives no reasoned explanation for the actions, she wrote. The pause has now been in place for three months; the pause is, in effect, an indefinite suspension, she wrote. The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
