Twenty states, including Michigan, have joined in a lawsuit to block cuts by the Trump administration to a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) program designed to help protect communities from natural disasters.
Michigan is in line for $29 million in grants under the congressionally approved Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities — or BRIC — program. BRIC is supposed to help states get in front of disaster management with infrastructure resilience efforts. Backers say the program reduces human suffering and saves money by making systems less likely to crumble in the face of natural disasters.
The Trump administration plans to cut BRIC as part of its plans to reduce “waste, fraud and abuse.”
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel called rolling back BRIC “illegal and irresponsible” in a statement released by her office.
“Michigan has seen in recent years just how devastating severe storms and flooding can be,” Nessel said. “The BRIC program has proven effective at protecting lives and strengthening infrastructure before disasters strike. Shutting it down is not only unlawful but — as the recent tragedy in Texas makes all too clear — recklessly dangerous.”
Nessel said BRIC grants would fund projects for stormwater and flood protection, severe weather shelters and enforcing building standards that focus on disaster resilience. Nessel said if that funding is cut, the resilience projects would be canceled without new funding sources.
“Communities across the country are being forced to delay, scale back, or cancel hundreds of mitigation projects depending on this funding. 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,” said the complaint filed Wednesday in a U.S. District Court in Boston. “And in the meantime, Americans across the country face a higher risk of harm from natural disasters.”
The lawsuit argues that FEMA cuts tread on Congress’s constitutional authority to be the lead player in federal spending decisions. The lawsuit also argues FEMA has been led by acting directors since the beginning of the year with limited authority until a director is nominated by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. The final major claim is the reductions would violate the Administrative Procedure Act, which is supposed to guard against brash executive actions.
The lawsuit asks the federal judge to enjoin FEMA from ending BRIC and forbid the Trump administration from diverting the funding to other purposes.
