WASHINGTON, DC –  Today, U.S. Representatives Jerrold Nadler (NY-12), Tim Kennedy (NY-26), and Grace Meng (NY-06) led a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Senior Official Performing the Duties of FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton urging the Trump Administration to reverse its decision to eliminate over $325 million in funding for New York State through the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program.

They were joined on the letter by Representatives Yvette Clarke (NY-09), Dan Goldman (NY-10), Ritchie Torres (NY-15), Paul Tonko (NY-20), Hakeem Jeffries (NY-08), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), John Mannion (NY-22), Nydia Velázquez (NY-07), Gregory Meeks (NY-05), Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), George Latimer (NY-16), Tom Suozzi (NY-3), Pat Ryan (NY-18), and Laura Gillen (NY-04).

The Trump Administration’s decision to eliminate BRIC threatens over $325 million in hazard and flood mitigation projects across New York State. The Members also called on the Trump Administration to immediately release $1.6 billion in Disaster Relief Funds designated for New York, which remains unjustly frozen.

In their letter, the Members wrote: “We urge you to reverse your decision to eliminate BRIC funding, take immediate steps to reinstate previously approved grants without delay, and unfreeze the $1.6 billion in additional Disaster Relief Funds for New York that remain unjustly withheld.

During Hurricane Ida, 14 New Yorkers lost their lives—11 drowned in basement apartments. Nearly a decade earlier, Superstorm Sandy devastated our state, claiming 48 lives in New York and causing billions in damage,” the Members continued. “Entire neighborhoods were left underwater, infrastructure was destroyed, and vulnerable communities were pushed to the brink. In December 2022, after a historic winter storm claimed 47 lives in Western New York, a report found that investments in building upgrades were critical to building resilience and preventing this kind of devastation during future storms.”

“The projects now being cut by the Trump Administration were designed to prevent these levels of suffering from happening again. Canceling them now, especially as construction was poised to begin, sends a message that our communities’ lives, safety, and futures are disposable. They are not,” the Members concluded.

Among the projects now at risk are:

• $50 million for flood mitigation infrastructure in Central Harlem, home to schools, hospitals, elder care facilities, and thousands of low-income families.
• $50 million for East Elmhurst to prevent stormwater overflow in a largely residential area hit hard during Hurricane Ida.
• $42.4 million for coastal protection around the South Street Seaport, a vital economic and cultural hub of Lower Manhattan.
• $47 million for the Corona Corridor Cloudburst Hub, a green infrastructure project in Queens aimed at reducing storm-related runoff and flooding.
• $46.6 million for the Kissena Corridor Cloudburst Hub, an integrated green infrastructure project in Queens aimed at mitigating flooding.
• $13 million to protect Hunts Point—critical to New York City’s food supply and emergency response capacity.
• $11.5 million for storm surge barriers around the NYCHA Polo Grounds public housing and the adjacent P.S. 046 in Harlem.
• And many others, including nearly $20 million in protection for public housing developments in Brooklyn, such as Sheepshead Bay, Nostrand, and Breukelen Houses.

Beyond New York City, FEMA’s reversal also threatens urgently needed projects across the state. This includes $24 million for flood and ice jam mitigation along the Erie Canal in the Capital Region and $731,000 for dam decommissioning and floodplain restoration in Westchester. Communities in Buffalo, slated to benefit from much-needed infrastructure modernization, will lose out on $284,000 in critical funding for sustainable building construction support.

The full text of the members’ letter is available HERE. 

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