As many Americans have witnessed firsthand, the number of climate disasters each year have trended upwards in the last decade, averaging around 20 events per year. In 2024, there were 27 confirmed climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion each to affect United States, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Unfortunately, under orders from the Trump administration, NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) is no longer updating the Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters catalogue beyond its 2024 data.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is the nation’s leading agency responsible for responding to these climate disasters events. FEMA naturally also leads the nation’s strongest investments in climate resilience infrastructure. Those investments, too, are being rolled back by the Trump administration.

It was actually under the first Trump administration where one of the most successful and proactive climate resilience programs, FEMA’s Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC), was established.

The program was deemed wildly successful and certainly addressed a funding gap across the nation.

The BRIC program was created by the United States Congress in the Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018, which was signed into law by President Trump. In its first year of operation, while President Trump was still in office, $500 million in funding was made available for projects across the country. In just the first year, FEMA BRIC received more than 950 applications at a total of $3.1 billion in requested funding, well over the $500 million in available funding. The program was deemed wildly successful and certainly addressed a funding gap across the nation.

When the administration changed in 2021, President Biden recognized the value of the program by appropriating an additional $1 billion to BRIC through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

Table 1 (below) shows the number of applications, percentage of applications obligated, amount of funding requested, and amount of funding selected. The clearest evidence of how successful, and deeply necessary, the BRIC program is lies in the growing demand for funding each year.

Source: Congressional Research Service (CRS)

To the surprise of many, within 75 days of the second Trump administration, a memo was issued announcing cancelation of BRIC applications from 2020-2023 and an ending of the program. Suddenly, a program dedicated to protecting the most flood vulnerable communities was deemed “yet another example of a wasteful and ineffective FEMA program” in a memo…by the administration who established it.

Many advocates and elected leaders jumped to action to defend the BRIC program. Waterfront Alliance quickly came to the defense of BRIC and challenged the administration’s “indolent representation of a program that has brought tangible protection to millions of residents…”

Waterfront Alliance and more than 30 partners in the Rise to Resilience Coalition, urged New York State and City to take legal action against the cancellation of BRIC. At a New York City Hall rally, the Rise to Resilience Coalition and then-City Comptroller, Brad Lander, made the case for such legal action.

New York Attorney General, Letitia James, answered the call. Under Attorney General James’ leadership, New York joined a multistate lawsuit against the illegal shutdown of the BRIC program.

Not even six months later, in December 2025, a federal judge ruled in favor of Attorney General James, finding that the federal administration’s attempt to eliminate FEMA BRIC was illegal and the program must continue. This is a massive victory for hundreds of climate resilience and risk reduction projects across the nation.

The Trump administration has 60 days to appeal the ruling, which would be in early February 2026.

As for the current status BRIC funded projects in New York and New Jersey, it seems that little-to-no information has been shared by FEMA since the December 2025 ruling. All the while, dozens of projects have suffered from these setbacks and delays. Materially, nothing has changed since the administration attempted to cancel the program.

Even with the judge’s favorable ruling that BRIC must continue, existing BRIC projects continue to be crushed by the unknown.

Even with the judge’s favorable ruling that BRIC must continue, existing BRIC projects continue to be crushed by the unknown.

Waterfront Alliance will continue to monitor and check for updates on the program and projects. We also strongly encourage New York City, New York State, and New Jersey, to continue fighting for federal programs that protect the most flood and heat-vulnerable communities across the region.

This story features just two federal climate programs that are being rolled back: NOAA’s Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters database and FEMA’s BRIC program. Unfortunately, there are countless other programs facing the same scrutiny. Waterfront Alliance and our many Alliance and Coalition partners will continue to stand in defense of these programs, and advocate for local and state leadership to maintain momentum absent federal climate leadership.