New York Attorney General Letitia James and Connecticut Attorney General William Tong were on the winning side in a lawsuit they brought along with 18 other attorneys general and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania against the Trump administration.
The lawsuit was brought in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts against the Trump administration’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Federal Judge Richard Stearrns has issued a summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs and denied the Trump administration’s request for a summary judgment.
The lawsuit was designed to stop what the plaintiffs claimed was the illegal elimination of FEMA’s Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program, which supports critical infrastructure projects to protect communities from disasters before they happen. BRIC is FEMA’s largest disaster preparedness program and has received bipartisan support since its creation about 30 years ago. The Trump administration this year diverted $4 billion out of the BRIC program.
Judge Stearns emphasized that it was an Act of Congress that established the BRIC program.
“This is not a case about judicial encroachment on the discretionary authority of the Executive Branch,” Stearns wrote. “This is a case about unlawful Executive encroachment on the prerogative of Congress to appropriate funds for a specific and compelling purpose, and no more than that.”
New York has 38 BRIC projects totaling over $380 million throughout the state that were put at risk as a result of the termination of the program. New York City, which is particularly vulnerable to flooding, expected BRIC funds for 19 different projects.
“From devastating wildfires to record-breaking storms, communities across the country are facing threats from increasingly destructive natural disasters,” James said on Dec. 12. “The BRIC program helps states prepare for these disasters and save lives. This decision is a major victory for New Yorkers and millions across the country whose lives and livelihoods were put at risk by this administration’s reckless attempt to eliminate this program.”
According to Tong, Connecticut has received tens of millions of dollars in BRIC funding since 2020 to address flooding risks, storm surge hazards and more. Total canceled funds in Connecticut had been estimated to exceed $84 million, including $42 million for the Resilient Bridgeport Coastal Flood Defense System to address recurrent flooding and coastal storm surges affecting the city of Bridgeport’s South End, which has been repeatedly impacted by major storm events. Also canceled was the allocation of $900,000 for the ongoing City of Stamford Seawall Improvement Project. The existing seawall is operating beyond its useful life and threatens wastewater infrastructure, properties and lives. Also impacted by the administration’s BRIC cancellation was $25 million for the ongoing New Haven Inland and Coastal Resiliency Project to address flooding.
“Donald Trump tried to unilaterally dismantle and defund our government’s ability to prevent and prepare for natural disasters. We sued, and once again, we won,” Tong said. “Refusing to prepare for a disaster does not stop nature, does not save lives, and does not save money. This was yet another attempt by Donald Trump to hijack our tax dollars for ballrooms and billionaire tax breaks, and we’re not going to let him get away with it.”
Joining James and Tong in filing the lawsuit were the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia, as well as the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
