Trump cancels $325M in disaster prevention funds for New York
East Elmhurst, Queens, was flooded by torrential rains brought on by Hurricane Ida in 2021. Photo by Kevin P. Coughlin / Office of the Governor on Flickr
Projects that would protect vulnerable New York City neighborhoods from flooding and intense storms are at risk after President Donald Trump’s administration announced plans to cut federal funding. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) canceled more than $325 million in grants to New York State that would go toward critical infrastructure and community resilience projects, according to Gov. Kathy Hochul. A majority of the projects impacted are designed to help New York City prepare for weather disasters like flooding and extreme rainfall.
On Friday, FEMA announced the end of the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program and canceled all BRIC applications for 2020-2023. The program, which began during Trump’s first term and was expanded under President Joe Biden, allocated funding for “eligible activities that reduce or eliminate long-term risk to people and property from future disasters.”
Under Biden, FEMA’s priorities for the program included incentivizing natural disaster risk reduction that mitigates threats to public infrastructure and disadvantaged communities, using designs to reduce carbon emissions, and enhancing climate resilience.
According to the New York Times, BRIC has distributed more than $5 billion in grants to states since 2020. Nearly $1 billion in funding awarded but not distributed will be returned to the Treasury Department, according to the agency.
“The BRIC program was yet another example of a wasteful and ineffective FEMA program,” a spokesperson for FEMA said in a statement. “It was more concerned with political agendas than helping Americans affected by natural disasters. Under Secretary Noem’s leadership, we are committed to ensuring that Americans in crisis can get the help and resources they need.”
The Trump administration revoked $325.5 million in funding for projects that have not yet begun construction; according to the governor, there is an additional $56 million worth of projects where work has started that could also be at risk.
In a press release, Hochul listed the projects impacted by the federal cuts, which include the following in New York City:
- Central Harlem Cloudburst Flood Mitigation ($50 million): Reduces storm-related runoff and flooding from cloudbursts, which are sudden heavy downpours, by improving stormwater infrastructure. The project focuses on 370 acres in disadvantaged and low-income neighborhoods with “six schools, two daycare centers, three hospitals, six places of worship, and three elder care facilities.”
- East Elmhurst Cloudburst Flood Mitigation ($50 million): The project would strengthen and improve stormwater infrastructure in a 485-acre area that’s mostly residential.
- Kissena Corridor Cloudburst Hub ($46.6 million)
- Corona East Cloudburst Hub ($47 million)
- Seaport Coastal Resilience Project ($42.4 million): A project to protect the Seaport from current and future tidal flooding, sea level rise, and urban heat effect.
- Stormwater Flooding Building Codes Provision Development ($468,000): Aims to support the development of building code provisions to address safety risks and reduce damages from stormwater flooding to then be applied to buildings at risk of stormwater flooding across the city.
- NYCHA Polo Grounds Coastral Storm Surge Barrier ($11.5 million): Supports the construction of floodwalls at the NYCHA Polo Grounds Tower and adjacent public school, to protect from storm surge and sea level rise.
- Breukelen Houses Stormwater Protection ($16 million): A flood mitigation project for a public housing complex in Brooklyn that includes bioretention and underground drainage basins.
- Hunts Point Food Security Mitigation ($13 million): Protects against flooding at two critical food supply facilities.
- Stormwater Protections for Nostrand and Sheepshead Bay Houses ($18.8 million): This project creates a flood risk reduction strategy for public housing communities in Brooklyn that are at risk of extreme flooding.
Other projects that will lose funding include a stream restoration in Westchester and flood mitigation in Saratoga County.
“In the last few years, New Yorkers have faced hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, wildfires and even an earthquake–and FEMA assistance has been critical to help us rebuild. Cutting funding for communities across New York is short-sighted and a massive risk to public safety,” Hochul said in a statement.
“Without support for resilience projects now, our communities will be far more vulnerable when disaster strikes next. As I’ve said all along: no state in the nation can backfill the massive cuts being proposed in Washington, and it’s critical New Yorkers stand united to call out the damage this will cause.”
On Tuesday, FEMA also ordered New York City to turn over $106 million in already awarded grants related to migrant care, adding to the $80 million the agency took back in February. According to the New York Times, Mayor Eric Adams said the city would take legal action to recover the funds. The mayor’s lawsuit to get the $80 million back remains ongoing.
For months, Trump has said he’s thinking about getting rid of FEMA. Last month, he signed an executive order directing state and local governments to “play a more active and significant role” in preparing for disasters.
A coalition of 23 attorneys general, including New York Attorney General Letitita James, sued the government for freezing funds to states from FEMA. An earlier injunction blocked the Trump administration from unlawfully freezing federal funds.
Last week, a federal judge ruled that Trump violated the order to halt sweeping freezes to federal funding by withholding FEMA funds to at least 19 states, Courthouse News Service reported.
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