Federal Court Forces FEMA to Reinstate Billions in Resiliency Grants
March 24, 2026 · 2 min read
David Almeida
After nearly a year of legal battles across 20 states, a federal court has ordered FEMA to reinstate its Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program—the agency's primary vehicle for pre-disaster resilience funding that has distributed billions of dollars to state and local governments.
How a Billion-Dollar Program Got Frozen
FEMA abruptly canceled the BRIC program nearly a year ago, halting distributions nationwide and freezing $200 million in previously awarded grants for North Carolina alone. The total amount at stake reached $4.5 billion across all participating states. Projects caught in the freeze included flood protection for Hickory's wastewater treatment center, a flooding vulnerability study in Buncombe County, and the relocation of a water pump station from a floodplain in Hillsborough.
In December, a federal court ordered FEMA to release the awarded funds. The agency ignored the order for months. North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson, joined by 19 other state attorneys general, then filed a motion to compel compliance—which the court granted.
What FEMA Has Promised—and What Remains Uncertain
On March 20, FEMA stated it would "fully resume programmatic support for BRIC awards and sub applications, such as award monitoring and closeout, and completing pre-award review activities once the lapse in appropriations has ended." That final clause is the sticking point: the ongoing DHS funding dispute means the agency cannot yet act on its commitment.
State officials remain skeptical. "FEMA has represented in some public reporting that it will restart the BRIC program, but we haven't seen this go into effect yet," North Carolina's attorney general's office told reporters.
What Local Governments Should Do Now
Municipalities and counties with pending BRIC applications should contact their State Hazard Mitigation Officers to confirm application status. Communities that planned to apply in the next cycle should begin preparing proposals now—the program's court-ordered reinstatement means new solicitations will open once DHS funding is restored. Tracking tools and resilience funding strategies are available at grantedai.com. In-depth FEMA grant coverage continues on the Granted blog.