Since President Donald Trump took office in January, there has been nearly $300 million in federal aid that will help protect Florida communities from floods, hurricanes and other natural disasters.
Now, the state doesn’t get money and will not leave dozens of projects, from plans to source St. Augustine’s roads to a $150 million effort to strengthen South Florida’s canals.
Calling it a “vain, politicized grant program,” last week, Federal Emergency Management Director Cameron Hamilton ended the building’s resilient infrastructure and community, or the BRIC program.
BRIC is just a part of all FEMA funds that Florida has received, but it is important. The cancellation of the program says the Trump administration could completely scrap FEMA and give the state directly to deal with disaster responses that it deems appropriate.
Hamilton canceled all BRIC grants from 2020 to 2023, so it cannot spend the money that has been approved but not yet used and must be returned to the federal government.
Florida will lose $293 million of the $312 million legislature that has been unproblematic with hurricane relief and flood mitigation efforts. So far, it spent just $19 million, or 6%, of the BRIC grant.
“Removing funds allocated to councils aimed at flood mitigation and city storm preparation is an outrageous danger, especially in states that are vulnerable to climate disasters, such as Florida.”
She said Florida faces rising sea levels, facing more and more intense storms than before, she faces rising age, and needs to repair its elderly stormwater management system.
“Depriving these important resources creates an unnecessary risk for life, property and public safety,” Knight said. “Florida Congress members owe the public a commitment to restoring and protecting this important fund.”
The BRIC program began during Trump’s first term in 2020 and provided $5 billion to the state and community. But now, FEMA officials say during the Biden administration the program is “more interested in political agenda than helping Americans affected by natural disasters.”
When Trump took office in January, he frozen all FEMA funds, including BRIC grants. Nearly 20 Democratic-led states and the District of Columbia have sued the Trump administration over the freeze. They said his own views and policies on immigration, climate change, the DEI and other so-called “awakening” ideologies were not aligned, and that it targeted the blue states that were unfairly targeted.
Florida did not take part in the lawsuit, and Gov. Ron DeSantis said he supports Trump’s efforts to restructure FEMA.
“We’ve completely cut FEMA’s bureaucracy and that money will go even further than we’d currently pass FEMA’s bureaucracy,” Desantis said at a February press conference.
Last year, Florida received over $1 billion in FEMA aid after Hurricanes Helen and Milton hit the state. FEMA has given $8.5 billion in disaster relief assistance in Florida 21 times in the last 14 years.
The governor’s office and the state’s emergency management department did not respond to requests for comment regarding the cancelled BRIC grant.
The accused state was first successful when Rhode Island Judge John McConnell ordered the Trump administration to lift the FEMA freeze, calling it a “hermit” effort to punish a nation that differs from the White House. But a few days later, he gave Trump a reprieve after the Supreme Court decision in another case appeared to have proven his actions.
Now, FEMA has cancelled the BRIC grant that Florida uses to enhance flood-prone roads in Jacksonville, build hurricane community safe rooms for first responders in Key West, and embark on flood mitigation work on canals in North Miami-Dade and South Broward Counties.
The agencies most affected by the BRIC termination are South Florida Water Management Districts, responsible for maintaining water quality, supplying water, ecosystem restoration, and flood control for 16 counties from Orlando South to Key.
The district received only $6 million of the $150 million grant before the program was cancelled. The funding was intended to help construct three structures in the canals and basins in North Miami-Dade and Broward Counties to improve flood mitigation.
At a trustee meeting Thursday, the district’s executive director Drew Bar Trett said design work “for some of the pump stations” remains ongoing. “We’re still doing that while we’re evaluating the ultimate impact on these projects.”
The Florida Emergency Management Department will need to return $36.9 million in BRIC money allocated for administrative costs and technical assistance.
Jacksonville loses $24.9 million aimed at raising the roads and improves its water reclamation facility.
Key West has put in $11.25 million in planned community safe rooms, while Pasco County will lose $5.56 million in 18 road improvement projects.
