20 states sue the Trump admin for cutting disaster prevention money
Trump admin hit with lawsuit filed by 20 states
- A coalition of 20 US states, predominantly led by Democrats, has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration to reinstate the multi-billion-dollar Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant programme.
- The lawsuit, lodged in Boston federal court, argues that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) unlawfully cancelled the BRIC programme in April, despite its prior congressional approval and funding.
- Established in 2018, the BRIC programme was designed to fund up to 75 per cent of infrastructure projects aimed at protecting communities from natural catastrophes, having allocated approximately $4.5 billion for nearly 2,000 projects over four years.
- The states contend that the Trump administration's termination of the programme violates core separation of powers principles and that the acting FEMA directors who cancelled it were not properly appointed.
- The legal action seeks a preliminary injunction to compel the programme's reinstatement, highlighting the critical need for federal funding for disaster mitigation, especially following recent deadly floods in Texas.