North Carolina has joined eleven other states in a lawsuit against the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, alleging that the agencies are withholding $17.5 million in grants over “unlawful terms.”
State Attorney General Jeff Jackson filed a complaint as part of a group lawsuit on Nov. 4.
Jackson said the money is crucial in funding emergency equipment, along with supporting the salaries of personnel who step in to assist with natural disasters and other emergencies, including terrorism and threats to public safety.
The state relied on those personnel to coordinate response efforts and support local efforts during Hurricane Helene, and the subsequent wildfires that erupted months later in western North Carolina.
“This money is for when the worst thing happens in your county, whether it’s a major natural disaster that requires a lot of first responders or something to do with homeland security or terrorism,” Jackson told BPR in a phone interview. “This money goes to help pay the salaries of hundreds of people whose job it is to respond in those emergencies and to keep people safe.”
In late September, FEMA approved more than $29 million in grants for North Carolina; $8.5 million in Emergency Management Performance Grants and $21 million through its Homeland Security Grant Program.
But then, days later, the agency announced policy changes, including a “Population Certification Hold,” that limited North Carolina and other states' ability to access the funds. The Population Certification Hold requires states to prove their population counts and certify that they “do not include individuals that have been removed from the State pursuant to the immigration laws of the United States.”
FEMA also shortened the period for disbursing funds from three years to one-year.
These new conditions, Jackson said, “aren’t possible for us to comply with.”
“The problem in reducing the pay period from three years to one year is that it takes more than one year to get FEMA approval for how we can spend the money. So it's sort of the same thing as canceling the fund,” he said.
Confirming the latest population count, Jackson said, is also not possible because the state relies on data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
“The federal census doesn't keep a running tally on a month-to-month basis. That's just not how it operates. So, the number that they've requested just doesn't exist right now.”
In a written statement, a spokesperson from FEMA defended its new grant requirements, calling them “part of a methodical, reasonable effort to ensure that federal dollars are used effectively.”
“This is yet another example of a lawsuit trying to obstruct President Trump’s agenda and the will of the American people. At the direction of Secretary Noem, FEMA has implemented additional requirements on its grant programs. These changes are neither arbitrary nor capricious,” FEMA said.
Not the state’s only federal lawsuit
This isn’t the first lawsuit that Jackson has filed against FEMA. In July, North Carolina, along with 19 other states, sued the agency for abruptly canceling $21 million in grants that would’ve helped with climate resiliency projects.
The canceled grants included a $5.4 million grant for flood protection in Hickory, a $7.6 million Resilient Wastewater Treatment Infrastructure project in Forest City and a $200,000 watershed vulnerability assessment in Buncombe County.
The NC Department of Justice also has open lawsuits with the Environmental Protection Agency over $150 million in contested solar energy money and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
