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Axios
6 days ago
- Politics
- Axios
Trump administration sued by 20 states over FEMA funding cuts
The Trump administration is being sued by 20 states who are seeking to block the cancelation of a grant program that helped protect against potential natural disasters. The big picture: "By unilaterally shutting down FEMA's flagship pre-disaster mitigation program, Defendants have acted unlawfully and violated core separation of powers principles," says the lawsuit that was filed in Boston, Mass., on Wednesday on the program, which has helped states, local and territorial governments and Tribal Nations work to reduce their hazard risk. Driving the news: FEMA announced in an April that it was ending the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities grant program and canceling all BRIC applications from fiscal years 2020-23. The post announcing the cuts that appears to have since been removed was titled, "FEMA Ends Wasteful, Politicized Grant Program, Returning Agency to Core Mission of Helping Americans Recovering From Natural Disasters." The suit that led by Washington and Massachusetts argues that by "refusing to spend funds Congress directed toward BRIC or trying to spend them on other programs" the administration had violated the Constitution and unlawfully intruded on Congress' "power of the purse." Zoom in: "The impact of the shutdown has been devastating. Communities across the country are being forced to delay, scale back, or cancel hundreds of mitigation projects depending on this funding," the states argue in the suit. Projects that have been in development for years, and in which communities have invested millions of dollars for planning, permitting, and environmental review are now threatened. And in the meantime, Americans across the country face a higher risk of harm from natural disasters. For the record: Most of the states suing the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Acting FEMA head Cameron Hamilton, the Department of Homeland Security and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem are Democratic-led. The states suing the administration are: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.
The Hill
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Trump sued over ending grant program
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Boston, contends that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) unlawfully eliminated its Building Resilient Infrastructures and Communities (BRIC) program earlier this year, stepping on Congress's powers. The states say the impact of the shutdown has been 'devastating.' 'Communities across the country are being forced to delay, scale back, or cancel hundreds of mitigation projects depending on this funding,' the complaint reads. 'Projects that have been in development for years, and in which communities have invested millions of dollars for planning, permitting, and environmental review are now threatened,' it continues. Before the turn of the century, Congress and FEMA started implementing mitigation as a tactic against natural disasters, as opposed to reacting after crises. The BRIC program, created in 2018 as an iteration of past programs, has helped avoid more than $150 billion in costs alongside other federal mitigation grants, the complaint says. In April, the Trump administration shuttered the program, calling it 'wasteful' and 'politicized.' The Hill requested comment from FEMA.
6 days ago
- Politics
20 states sue FEMA for canceling grant program that guards against natural disasters
Twenty Democratic-led states filed suit Wednesday against the Federal Emergency Management Agency, challenging the elimination of a long-running grant program that helps communities guard against damage from natural disasters. The lawsuit contends President Donald Trump's administration acted illegally when it announced in April that it was ending the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program. FEMA canceled some projects already in the works and refused to approve new ones despite funding from Congress. 'In the wake of devastating flooding in Texas and other states, it's clear just how critical federal resources are in helping states prepare for and respond to natural disasters,' said Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell of Massachusetts, where the federal lawsuit was filed. "By abruptly and unlawfully shutting down the BRIC program, this administration is abandoning states and local communities that rely on federal funding to protect their residents and, in the event of disaster, save lives.' FEMA did not immediately respond Wednesday to a request for comment. It said in April that the program was 'wasteful and ineffective' and 'more concerned with political agendas than helping Americans affected by natural disasters.' The program, established by a 2000 law, provides grants for a variety of disaster mitigation efforts, including levees to protect against floods, safe rooms to provide shelter from tornadoes, vegetation management to reduce damage from fires and seismic retrofitting to fortify buildings for earthquakes. During his first term, Trump signed a law shoring up funding for disaster risk reduction efforts. The program then got a $1 billion boost from an infrastructure law signed by former President Joe Biden. That law requires FEMA to make available at least $200 million annually for disaster mitigation grants for the 2022-2026 fiscal years, the lawsuit says. The suit contends the Trump administration violated the constitutional separation of powers because Congress had not authorized the program's demise. It also alleges the program's termination was illegal because the decision was made while FEMA was under the leadership of an acting administrator who had not met the requirements to be in charge of the agency. The lawsuit says communities in every state have benefited from federal disaster mitigation grants, which saved lives and spared homes, businesses, hospitals and schools from costly damage. Some communities have already been affected by the decision to end the program. Hillsborough, North Carolina, had been awarded nearly $7 million to relocate a wastewater pumping station out of a flood plain and make other water and sewer system improvements. But that hadn't happened yet when the remnants of Tropical Storm Chantal damaged the pumping station and forced it offline last week. In rural Mount Pleasant, North Carolina, town officials had hoped to use more than $4 million from the BRIC program to improve stormwater drainage and safeguard a vulnerable electric system, thus protecting investments in a historic theater and other businesses. While the community largely supports Trump, assistant town manager Erin Burris said people were blindsided by the lost funding they had spent years pursuing. 'I've had downtown property owners saying, 'What do we do?'' Burris said. 'I've got engineering plans ready to go and I don't have the money to do it.' ___ Associated Press reporters Jack Brook, Michael Casey and Gary D. Robertson contributed to this report. ___ Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
Winnipeg Free Press
7 days ago
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
20 states sue FEMA for canceling grant program that guards against natural disasters
Twenty Democratic-led states filed suit Wednesday against the Federal Emergency Management Agency, challenging the elimination of a long-running grant program that helps communities guard against damage from natural disasters. The lawsuit contends President Donald Trump's administration acted illegally when it announced in April that it was ending the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program. FEMA canceled some projects already in the works and refused to approve new ones despite funding from Congress. 'In the wake of devastating flooding in Texas and other states, it's clear just how critical federal resources are in helping states prepare for and respond to natural disasters,' said Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell of Massachusetts, where the federal lawsuit was filed. 'By abruptly and unlawfully shutting down the BRIC program, this administration is abandoning states and local communities that rely on federal funding to protect their residents and, in the event of disaster, save lives.' FEMA did not immediately respond Wednesday to a request for comment. It said in April that the program was 'wasteful and ineffective' and 'more concerned with political agendas than helping Americans affected by natural disasters.' The program, established by a 2000 law, provides grants for a variety of disaster mitigation efforts, including levees to protect against floods, safe rooms to provide shelter from tornadoes, vegetation management to reduce damage from fires and seismic retrofitting to fortify buildings for earthquakes. During his first term, Trump signed a law shoring up funding for disaster risk reduction efforts. The program then got a $1 billion boost from an infrastructure law signed by former President Joe Biden. That law requires FEMA to make available at least $200 million annually for disaster mitigation grants for the 2022-2026 fiscal years, the lawsuit says. The suit contends the Trump administration violated the constitutional separation of powers because Congress had not authorized the program's demise. It also alleges the program's termination was illegal because the decision was made while FEMA was under the leadership of an acting administrator who had not met the requirements to be in charge of the agency. The lawsuit says communities in every state have benefited from federal disaster mitigation grants, which saved lives and spared homes, businesses, hospitals and schools from costly damage. Some communities have already been affected by the decision to end the program. Hillsborough, North Carolina, had been awarded nearly $7 million to relocate a wastewater pumping station out of a flood plain and make other water and sewer system improvements. But that hadn't happened yet when the remnants of Tropical Storm Chantal damaged the pumping station and forced it offline last week. In rural Mount Pleasant, North Carolina, town officials had hoped to use more than $4 million from the BRIC program to improve stormwater drainage and safeguard a vulnerable electric system, thus protecting investments in a historic theater and other businesses. While the community largely supports Trump, assistant town manager Erin Burris said people were blindsided by the lost funding they had spent years pursuing. 'I've had downtown property owners saying, 'What do we do?'' Burris said. 'I've got engineering plans ready to go and I don't have the money to do it.' ___ Associated Press reporters Jack Brook, Michael Casey and Gary D. Robertson contributed to this report. ___ Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
Boston Globe
7 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Massachusetts sues Trump over cuts to climate disaster funds
'In the wake of devastating flooding in Texas and other states, it's clear just how critical federal resources are in helping states prepare for and respond to natural disasters,' Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell said in a statement Wednesday. '... This administration is abandoning states and local communities that rely on federal funding to protect their residents.' Trump administration officials ended the Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster preparedness grant program in April. In a press release at the time — which is Advertisement FEMA's disaster preparedness grant program, currently called the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program, or BRIC, has been around in some form for decades. It funds things like floodwalls, pump stations, tornado shelters, and levees across the nation. The program got a big boost during the Biden Administration with a $1 billion appropriation from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Advertisement Since Trump has taken office, his administration has aimed to reverse much of the funding allocated by that legislation and from the Inflation Reduction Act, both of which provided billions for climate resilience projects. President Trump suggested early in his administration that FEMA would 'go away,' and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said they would 'eliminate' the agency. Since the Texas flood emergency, however, administration officials FEMA officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the end of the grant program or about why the press release concerning it is no longer posted. In They Massachusetts lost out on about In Chelsea and Everett, a $50 million grant from the program would've been used to build a storm surge control facility, a storm surge barrier, and restore salt marsh to prevent flooding along a tributary of the Mystic River. More than 5,000 residents live in the floodplain nearby, according to the complaint. Advertisement And in Boston, Massachusetts is one of the most vulnerable states in the nation to sea level rise, which is increasing at a faster pace in New England than in most areas of the world. Already, sea levels here have risen by about a foot over the last century, and are likely to rise another foot by 2050 compared to 2000, Boston, a major city built right up to the water's edge, is particularly at risk. Dozens of coastal resilience projects are planned for the city's 47-mile waterfront to withstand 40 inches of sea level rise by 2070, but financing is an open question. Cities and states have long relied on the federal government to help fund costly sea walls, berms, and stormwater infrastructure, which are now being delayed or halted altogether by the federal funding cuts. 'Communities across the country are being forced to delay, scale back, or cancel hundreds of mitigation projects depending on this funding,' states attorneys general wrote in the lawsuit. 'And in the meantime, Americans across the country face a higher risk of harm from natural disasters.' Erin Douglas can be reached at
