Federal judge rules Trump administration cannot reallocate billions meant for disaster mitigation
Boston (AP) – On Tuesday, a federal judge prevented the evacuation of Trump administration against communities to protect communities against natural disasters.
Richard G. Stearns, the US regional judge in Boston, has decided to have a prerequisite for 20 Democratic states, and the lawsuits on the financing are progressing.
Federal Emergency Management Agency spokesman did not respond immediately to the request for comments.
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell said he would continue to fight to make sure that “communities can be prepared for natural disasters sufficiently”.
Massachusetts and other states that brought the case argued that Fema lacks the authority to terminate the flexible infrastructure and communities program of the building and to re -guide more than $ 4 billion. The program aims to harden the country -wide infrastructure against potential storm damage.
Fema initially announced that it ended the program, but later he said he evaluated him in a court.
He was allocated by the congress, which sets money for the program, and the case of the states said that the attempt to reintegrate it would work against the Constitution.
A lawyer Nicole O’Connor for the government argued that the funds could be used for both disaster recovery and disaster prevention, and that Fema should have the authority to use the money it deems appropriate.
Stearns said he was not convinced that Congress had given Fema any discretion to re -guide the funds. The states also showed that the “difficulty and public interest balance” was in favor.
“It has a natural interest in ensuring the government to follow the law, and potential difficulties accrued from the funds restructured to states are great, S says Stearns. “The BRIC is designed to protect the program against natural disasters and save lives.”
The program has provided a grant for a number of disaster management projects, including strengthening of electrical grids, construction of lests for flood protection and displacement of vulnerable water treatment plants. Most of the projects In rural communities.
Fema said News Bulletin in April The program “terminated”, but the agency’s acting chief David Richardson, later in a court that the fema will not only finish or revised, he said.
Stearns said that Fema decided to end the program and “Fait is moving towards an item” and canceled the new financing opportunities and should not expect any funded financing to the stakeholders.
States, including California, New York and Washington, argued that only the threat of losing financing is at risk of cancel, delay or shrink. And warned that the termination of the program would be extremely humble.
In the case filed in July, “Before we strike our communities against disasters against disasters, we will reduce the injuries, save lives, protect the properties, and ultimately save money to be spent after disaster”.
In a court, FEMA said that a precautionary measure about the use of funds could prevent the ability to respond to great disasters.
However, Stearns said that if a disaster occurs at unlikely unprecedented rates, the administration could return to it for financing.
