Press Release
Posted:
Napa – Last week, Reps. Mike Thompson (CA-04) and Seth Moulton (MA-06) led a letter with 26 other representatives opposing FEMA’s decision to terminate funding under the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program and urging the agency to restore the grant program. This popular program provides funding for projects that reduce disaster risks, improve community preparedness, and enhance infrastructure to withstand future hazards like floods, wildfires, hurricanes, and earthquakes.
“The Trump Administration’s cut to critical fire prevention grants to our district is penny-wise and pound-foolish,” said Thompson. “Our district knows too well the devastation that comes with these horrific fires. In 2017, 2018, and 2019, we lost thousands of homes, businesses, important wildlife habitat — and most tragically, precious lives. If we don’t invest in proper disaster mitigation, we risk losing more lives, increasing economic losses, and destroying our communities.”
“Ending the FEMA BRIC program is a terrible mistake and marks a huge setback for many climate-vulnerable cities and towns in my district,” said Moulton. “On the North Shore, BRIC grants have helped coastal communities like Newburyport and Manchester update infrastructure and mitigate threats from sea-level rise, flooding, and storm surge. Other communities will now be denied that critical support. We are demanding answers and a course correction from the Administration. It’s clear that they have no interest supporting community efforts to protect critical infrastructure, public safety, and our local economies.”
The BRIC program was created during the first Trump Administration as part of a larger effort to enhance disaster resilience and preparedness nationwide. Since then, FEMA has distributed $5 billion in grants through the program, helping communities take proactive steps in strengthening their infrastructure and mitigating the impacts of future natural disasters. FEMA recently announced that it will be canceling the popular BRIC program and will not allocate the $750 million that was planned for 2025.
In 2024, Napa County was awarded $35 million through the BRIC program, and Sonoma County was awarded $37 million in 2021. These grants were intended to fund comprehensive, multi-year projects designed to harden homes, reduce hazardous fuels and create defensible space between homes or structures to slow down a fire’s progress. Both counties had begun work using the grant funding, including environmental planning, on-the-ground fire mitigation, and public education.
The full text of the letter can be found here and below.
Dear Acting Administrator Hamilton:
We are writing to express our strong opposition to FEMA’s decision to terminate funding under the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program. As our nation continues to face an unprecedented increase in the frequency and severity of natural disasters, programs like BRIC are critical to ensuring that communities are prepared and resilient in the face of future emergencies.
In recent years, we have seen catastrophic flooding, wildfires, hurricanes, and tornadoes devastate communities across our country. From the Gulf Coast to the West Coast, vulnerable regions are experiencing natural disasters with increasing intensity. California, in particular, has been disproportionately impacted by wildfires. In 2020 alone, California experienced the largest wildfire season in state history, with over 4.2 million acres burned, nearly 10,000 structures destroyed, and 31 lives lost, including three firefighters. The total economic losses from these fires were estimated at $12 billion, not including the long-term health and environmental impacts. These numbers reflect a growing trend. California has faced more than 100 wildfires in each of the last five years, and the state continues to face significant threats.
The Gulf Coast and Southeastern U.S. have long faced the devastating impacts of hurricanes, and recent years have only heightened the risks. In 2020, the U.S. experienced a record 30 named storms in the Atlantic hurricane season, with 13 hurricanes, including six major hurricanes. States such as Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida have faced some of the worst hurricane seasons on record. For example, Hurricane Laura, which struck Louisiana in 2020, was one of the most powerful storms to hit the state in over a century, causing at least $14 billion in damages and killing 33 people.
The BRIC program was created during the first Trump Administration as part of a larger effort to enhance disaster resilience and preparedness nationwide. Since then, FEMA has distributed $5 billion in grants through the program, helping communities take proactive steps in strengthening their infrastructure and mitigating the impacts of future natural disasters.
Without adequate investment in disaster mitigation, we risk losing more lives, increasing economic losses, and straining already overburdened emergency response systems. The BRIC program not only provides funding for infrastructure improvements but also offers communities the tools to plan, prepare, and respond effectively to future disasters. It is an investment in both long-term disaster prevention and public safety.
As natural disasters become more frequent and severe, the need for proactive resilience measures is more urgent than ever. We strongly urge FEMA to reconsider this decision and restore the BRIC program to ensure that communities across the United States have the resources they need to protect their residents, infrastructure, and economies from the devastating impacts of natural disasters.
Thank you for your attention to this matter, and we look forward to your response.