AG Brown sues Trump administration for withholding climate funding

SEATTLE – Attorney General Nick Brown today filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for illegally withholding more than $9 million in congressionally authorized funds to help protect Washington state from the impacts of climate change.

Our changing climate has increased the frequency and severity of life-threatening hazards in Washington such as heatwaves, wildfires, drought, and flooding, and caused slower moving but devastating changes such as sea level rise, ocean acidification, and loss of mountain snowpack.

Congress has repeatedly recognized the importance of climate resilience, frequently directing funds to federal agencies like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to help states and other entities prepare for the effects of climate change. In 2022 and 2023, NOAA announced two climate resilience-focused funding opportunities that emphasized equity, inclusion, and engagement with historically underrepresented communities that are disproportionately exposed to the effects of climate change. Washington was awarded funding through both programs.

But on May 5, NOAA abruptly — and unlawfully — terminated both awards, saying the programs were inconsistent with the president’s new priorities. That arbitrary move to withhold the funds has real impact for Washington — jeopardizing jobs and threatening to undermine the state’s comprehensive climate resilience strategy.

“Climate change is here, and Washington communities need to prepare and build resilience,” Brown said. “The federal government promised funding to help local communities adapt, and we’re holding them to it.”

Tribal Stewards Program

One of the projects targeted is the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) Tribal Stewards Program. NOAA awarded SBCTC $9.3 million just last year to develop a network of Washington colleges, tribes, and employers and to educate 2,130 post-secondary students in wildlife biology, environmental science, and other natural resource degrees with a focus on climate resilience.

Eleven employers had already committed to hiring Tribal Stewards graduates, who would have filled positions in some of the state’s most economically depressed regions and areas most vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change.

“NOAA’s decision to abruptly stop funding Washington’s Tribal Stewards Program directly impacts future workers who want to start work in well-paying climate resilience jobs and employers in these in-demand fields,” said Nate Humphrey, SBCTC executive director. “Without this funding, Washington’s colleges and tribes will not be able to keep workers up to date with industry trends, putting our state at risk of falling behind in these important specialties.”

Advancing an Equitable Framework for Coastal Resilience

The other program targeted by the cuts is the Department of Ecology’s project titled Advancing an Equitable Framework for Coastal Resilience in Washington State. NOAA awarded the project $250,000 in 2023 to reduce environmental and health disparities by supporting local efforts to address coastal hazards.

NOAA’s withholding of nearly half the funds, approximately $114,000, brings that work to a halt, leaving Washington’s coastal communities vulnerable to flooding, erosion, and other hazards.

The complaint says the U.S. Department of Commerce and NOAA violated the Administrative Procedure Act by, among other things, taking arbitrary and capricious action to terminate the funding. The suit argues that the agencies’ actions are unconstitutional because they violated the U.S. Constitution’s Spending Clause and foundational separation of powers principles.

The state asks the court to determine that the agencies’ actions were unlawful and unconstitutional and to reverse the terminations.

Assistant Attorneys General Caitlin Soden, Leah Brown, and Ellen Range, and Paralegals Joshua Bennett and Julie Dolloff worked on the case for Washington state.

A copy of the complaint is available here.

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