AG Kaul files lawsuit challenging Trump administration’s new FEMA aid conditions

MADISON, Wis. (CIVIC MEDIA) – Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul has joined a coalition composed of 11 other states in filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s new conditions for receiving disaster relief.

The lawsuit claims that the new conditions for states to receive Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants are unlawful. According to a Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) news release, the conditions have been set for the Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) and the Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP).

In Wisconsin, the EMPG helps state localities and tribes develop several disaster preparedness, education, and response programs, while the HGSP provides funding for recipients to purchase equipment and training for bomb squads, dive and search teams, Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams, and two intelligence fusion centers used to identify and respond to terrorist activity.

These grants go towards efforts and equipment that help protect Wisconsinites’ safety,” Kaul said in a statement. “The federal government shouldn’t be imposing new, unlawful conditions that hinder the use of these funds.”

Additionally, FEMA has shortened the performance period for using both grants from three years to one year, while also putting one of the grant’s funding on hold.

The multi-state coalition argues the newly added conditions are illegal and against FEMA’s grant procedures. It contends that the changes exceed FEMA’s authority, were implemented without a suitable explanation, and violate federal procedures.

The complaint can be viewed in full here.