Federal Judge Orders FEMA to Reinstate BRIC Program, Freeing $200M for NC Mitigation Projects

RALEIGH — In a major victory for storm-weary North Carolina, a federal judge on Friday ordered FEMA to fully reinstate a vital pre-disaster mitigation grant program that the agency shuttered last year. The ruling clears the way for dozens of projects in Western North Carolina that have been stalled since the catastrophic flooding of Hurricane Helene.U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns granted a motion filed by North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson to enforce a prior court order.