20 states sue Trump administration for pulling $4.5 billion from FEMA disaster prevention

(CN) — A coalition of 20 states sued the Trump administration on Wednesday for shutting down a $4.5 billion grant program aimed at preventing natural disasters by strengthening local infrastructure.

In a 68-page lawsuit filed in Massachusetts, the states claim that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) unlawfully ended the Building Resilient Infrastructures and Communities (BRIC) program, a bipartisan initiative that supports infrastructure projects nationwide.

“The impact of the shutdown has been devastating,” the states argue. “Communities across the country are being forced to delay, scale back, or cancel hundreds of mitigation projects depending on this funding.”

Although BRIC began in 2018, states say it builds on decades of disaster relief grants and is highly effective, citing studies that show $1 spent saves $6 in post-disaster costs.

FEMA announced the program’s end in the spring, claiming that it was “wasteful” and “politicized” in a press release from April 4, which has since been deleted from the agency’s website.

“The BRIC program was yet another example of a wasteful and ineffective FEMA program,” said an agency spokesperson. “It was more concerned with political agendas than helping Americans affected by natural disasters.”

A spokesperson for FEMA didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday.

However, the states argue that funding is more necessary now than ever, thanks in part to the impact of climate change on floods, heat waves and other extreme weather events.

“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,” they say. “And in the meantime, Americans across the country face a higher risk of harm from natural disasters.”

The states argue that pulling funding puts them at greater risk from extreme weather and jeopardizes up to 2,000 FEMA-approved projects.

In Illinois, the money supports clean drinking water in the town of DePue and flood prevention in the Des Plaines River Valley.

In California, it funds a $21 million flood prevention project in Sacramento and a $33 million landslide prevention effort in Rancho Palos Verdes.

And in New York, $50 million from the BRIC program was allocated to protect New York City residents from rising sea levels and extreme heat. All of which are now in question.

“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,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement. “New Yorkers depend on quality roads, floodwalls, and other vital infrastructure to keep them safe when disaster strikes.”

“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,” James added.

Wednesday’s lawsuit is the latest of dozens scrutinizing the Trump administration’s unprecedented cuts to federal funding. The newest complaint reiterates that Congress, not the president, has the power of the purse, and that allowing the executive branch to rescind these grants violates the Constitution.

The states also argue that President Donald Trump unlawfully installed the two FEMA administrators carrying out this directive, further undermining its legality and legitimacy.

Massachusetts, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin make up the 20-state coalition behind Wednesday’s complaint.

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