State AGs Seek Court Order to Restore FEMA Disaster Funding

Detected February 17th, 2026

Summary

A coalition of State Attorneys General, led by Washington AG Nick Brown, has filed a motion to enforce a court order compelling FEMA to restore funding to the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program. The program, which has provided approximately $4.5 billion for disaster mitigation projects nationwide, was unlawfully terminated by FEMA, leading to delays and cancellations of nearly 2,000 projects.

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What changed

Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown, along with a coalition of 10 other states and two commonwealths, has filed a motion to enforce a court order against FEMA. The motion seeks to compel the Federal Emergency Management Agency to reverse its unlawful termination of the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program and to resume providing disaster mitigation funding. The coalition previously won a lawsuit on December 11, 2025, declaring the termination of this congressionally mandated program illegal, but FEMA has reportedly failed to comply with the order, leaving nearly 2,000 projects nationwide, including over two dozen in Washington totaling more than $150 million, in limbo.

The coalition is asking the court to mandate specific actions from the federal government, including making pre-disaster mitigation funds available, communicating the status of BRIC projects to states, informing stakeholders of the program's reversal, and submitting status reports to the court. Failure to comply with the court's order risks continued vulnerability for communities facing natural disasters and potential loss of critical infrastructure protection. The BRIC program has historically provided approximately $4.5 billion in funding for mitigation projects across the nation.

Source document (simplified)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Feb 17 2026

Attorney General Nick Brown and a multistate coalition today filed a motion asking the District Court of Massachusetts to enforce its order prohibiting the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from terminating the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities Program (BRIC) and directing the agency to promptly take all steps necessary to reverse the termination.

For three decades, the BRIC program has provided communities across the nation with resources to proactively fortify their infrastructure against natural disasters. By focusing on mitigation and community resilience, the program has saved lives, protected property, and saved money that would have otherwise been spent on post-disaster costs.

“Every day our communities have to wait for these funds leaves them vulnerable to the kind of devastation we saw from flooding in December,” Brown said. “More delay puts homes, businesses, and lives at risk.”

On July 16, 2025, Brown and the coalition filed a lawsuit to prevent FEMA from terminating its BRIC program – an action which had already delayed, scaled back, and cancelled hundreds of mitigation projects across the country depending on this funding. On Dec. 11, 2025, the coalition won their case. The court declared the termination of this congressionally mandated program unlawful and ordered FEMA to promptly take all steps necessary to reverse the termination.

More than two months have passed, and the federal government has offered no indication that they have complied with the court order. FEMA’s regional offices lack information about whether and when it will resume the BRIC program, and some have indicated that FEMA is taking a “wait and see” approach – contrary to the clear terms of the court’s order. During this time, the federal government has not identified any concrete steps that it has taken to reverse the BRIC termination.

The coalition is asking the court to enforce its order by requiring the federal government to make pre-disaster mitigation funds available as required by statute, communicate the status and next steps for current BRIC projects to the states, communicate the reversal of the BRIC termination to all relevant stakeholders, and file status reports with the court outlining any actions taken or planned to comply with the order.

Over the past four years, FEMA has selected nearly 2,000 projects to receive roughly $4.5 billion in BRIC funding nationwide. In Washington, about two dozen BRIC projects totaling more than $150 million have been in limbo due to the federal government’s actions.

Joining Brown in filing this motion are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, as well as the governors of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

A copy of the motion to enforce the court's summary judgment order is available here, and a copy of the memorandum in support of the motion to enforce is available here.

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