The Federal Emergency Management Agency has frozen nearly $10 billion in disaster aid for nonprofits including hospitals as it seeks to identify funding that could be used to help undocumented migrants, according to agency documents obtained by POLITICO’s E&E News.
The blocked money had been approved for nongovernmental organizations to rebuild their own facilities after a disaster and to provide services such as short-term housing to survivors.
FEMA is reviewing the funding to determine whether it helps migrants in violation of a Feb. 6 executive order by President Donald Trump to “stop funding NGOs that undermine the national interest.” The review is part of Trump’s broader crackdown on immigration and other programs that focus on climate change or diversity.
“That will adversely impact recovery, whether it’s North Carolina, Los Angeles or West Virginia,” former FEMA chief of staff Michael Coen said in an interview on Friday. “In these communities, a lot of the NGOs are a key part of the community and the community recovery process.”
