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A federal judge ruled on Dec. 11 that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has unlawfully terminated a pre-disaster mitigation program and ordered the agency to reverse its action.
U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns of the District of Massachusetts sided with 20 states and the District of Columbia, which argued the agency lacked the authority to cancel the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program, a congressionally funded initiative designed to help communities fortify their infrastructure against natural disasters.
The states filed a lawsuit after FEMA announced in April that it was ending the BRIC program and canceling all applications from 2020 to 2023 because it was “wasteful and ineffective.” The agency said the program put political agendas ahead of assisting natural disaster victims.
In a ruling, Stearns said FEMA’s termination of the program was an “unlawful executive encroachment” on Congress’s power to appropriate funds and that there is an “inherent public interest” in ensuring government compliance with the law.
“The BRIC program is designed to protect against natural disasters and save lives. It need not be gainsaid that the imminence of disasters is not deterred by bureaucratic obstruction,” the ruling states. “Any potential hardship to the government, in contrast, is minimal.”
In a summary judgment order issued on Dec. 11, Stearns ruled the termination of the BRIC program void and ordered FEMA to take all the necessary steps to reverse it.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said the agency had not terminated the BRIC program and that “any suggestion to the contrary is a lie.” The spokesperson noted that BRIC was used by the Biden administration “as a Green New Deal slush fund.”
“It’s unfortunate that an activist judge either didn’t understand that or didn’t care,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, part of the coalition in the lawsuit, issued a statement praising the judge’s decision.
“FEMA’s BRIC program provides critical funding that helps communities prepare for disasters before they strike,” Bonta stated. “Today, the court ruled in our favor, issuing a final ruling that ensures this funding continues to flow to climate resilience projects across our state.”
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, who co-led with Washington Attorney General Nick Brown in filing the lawsuit, said the court order will “undoubtedly save lives” by ensuring continued funding for communities to prepare for natural disasters.
Brown hailed the ruling as “a resounding win for public safety,” according to the state attorney general’s statement.
According to Bonta’s office, FEMA has allocated about $4.5 billion in BRIC funding to nearly 2,000 projects nationwide over the past four years, with California being the largest beneficiary.
