Judge Orders $5.8 Million Payment to E. Jean Carroll After Trump Loses Appeal Bid 
New Mexico AG Accuses DOJ of Delaying Jeffrey Epstein Ranch Investigation 
Iran Says It Closes Strait of Hormuz After Warning Shot at Vessel 
DOE Declares Power Grid Emergency as Extreme Heat Strains PJM Electricity Supply 
Iranian Missile Strike on UAE Oil Tankers Kills Indian Crew Member in Strait of Hormuz 
Trump, Canada Reach Gordie Howe Bridge Deal Ahead of July 27 Opening 
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of 702 Federal Regulations in Major Deregulation Push 
DOJ Seeks Dismissal of Gautam Adani Bribery Case, Citing Foreign Scope 
Trump to Deliver National Address on Declassified 2020 Election Intelligence 
Ukraine, Europe Launch Freyja Missile Shield to Strengthen Air Defense Against Russia 
Trump Orders DOJ Investigation Into Exxon, Chevron Over High Gas Prices 
US Appeals Court Limits ICE Detention Without Bond Hearings After 90 Days 
Vietnam’s population hit the 100 million milestone. Where’s it headed? 
Fortescue Faces Class Action Over Sexual Harassment Claims at Australian Mining Sites 
DHS Investigates Cyber Breach in Homeland Security Information-Sharing Network 
Iraq PM Visits Washington as U.S. Oil, Gas Deals Take Center Stage 
A coalition of 20 U.S. states, mostly led by Democrats, has filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s abrupt termination of a major FEMA grant program aimed at protecting communities from natural disasters. Filed in a Boston federal court, the lawsuit argues that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) lacked legal authority to end the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program without congressional approval.
The BRIC program, established in 2018, provides federal funding to states for disaster resilience infrastructure projects such as flood defenses, evacuation shelters, and bridge reinforcements. It covers up to 75% of project costs—or 90% for rural areas—and has allocated $4.5 billion to nearly 2,000 projects in the last four years.
Led by Washington and Massachusetts, the states contend that FEMA’s cancellation of BRIC in April violated the U.S. Constitution’s separation of powers. They argue that Congress had already approved and funded the program, making the administration’s unilateral decision unlawful. The lawsuit also claims that the officials who oversaw the termination—Cameron Hamilton and David Richardson—lacked proper appointment authority.
FEMA justified the program’s cancellation by calling it “wasteful, ineffective, and politicized.” However, bipartisan lawmakers urged FEMA in May to restore the grants, emphasizing their importance for vulnerable rural and tribal communities.
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell stressed that the catastrophic Texas floods, which killed over 130 people, underscore the urgent need for federal disaster preparedness funding. The lawsuit seeks a preliminary injunction to reinstate the BRIC program while legal proceedings continue.
This legal action follows another lawsuit in May challenging FEMA’s move to link emergency preparedness funding to immigration enforcement cooperation, signaling broader resistance to the Trump administration’s disaster funding policies.
