FEMA backlog causes delays in California infrastructure projects

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is down connected approving large projects to support Southern California totaling much than $191 million, a backlog that affects projects intended to trim harm from floods, earthquakes, fires, and landslides, according to FEMA data.

The projects are expected to beryllium funded by a FEMA programme called Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities — oregon BRIC. The Government Accountability Office has been studying the BRIC programme implicit the past year. 

"Back successful March of 2025, the caller medication came in, and they instantly canceled the BRIC program, and what we recovered is determination wasn't a batch of rationale down that," said Chris Currie, the manager of the GAO's Homeland Security and Justice team. "They fundamentally said that it was wasteful astatine the time. When we looked astatine it, though, they made that determination beauteous haphazardly and rapidly without truly reasoning done immoderate of that."

California and 19 different states sued the national authorities implicit the cancellation of BRIC, and successful the outpouring of 2026, a national justice ordered FEMA to proceed the program.

Despite FEMA announcing BRIC was reinstated months ago, exigency absorption sources archer CBS California Investigates that FEMA has not approved immoderate pending BRIC projects successful California this year, and payments connected already obligated projects are slow-moving.

A GAO study released successful September says the backlog of projects nationwide totals $2.2 billion.

"Inflation happened. The outgo increases happened. Labor prices increased," Currie explained. "A batch of enactment had to beryllium redone. In galore cases, these projects couldn't proceed due to the fact that they were doubly arsenic costly arsenic they were going to beryllium before."

Emergency absorption sources successful California echoed those concerns, telling CBS California Investigates that immoderate communities successful the authorities scrapped their BRIC projects altogether owed to the delays. 

California has the astir projects pending of immoderate authorities successful the country, immoderate archetypal submitted successful 2022, including a flood power task successful San Bernardino with a terms tag of $15 million.

San Bernardino County declined an interrogation for this story, but provided a written connection to CBS California Investigates. 

"We support a affirmative and productive moving narration with FEMA and Cal OES. We received archetypal confirmation successful April that the backing was moving forward, arsenic evidenced by the issuance of the Final Public Notice," a region spokesperson wrote successful an email to CBS California Investigates. "When the County primitively applied for the grant, we factored successful imaginable outgo increases 5 years out, and we expect the task to stay wrong that allocation. The task is presently successful design, and we proceed to beforehand the work, truthful we are positioned to determination into operation erstwhile backing is received."

Some counties with projects impacted by the delays accidental they've had constricted connection since the BRIC programme went backmost online this twelvemonth astir wherever their projects basal and if oregon erstwhile immoderate adjacent steps should beryllium expected.

This is happening, arsenic immoderate counties waiting connected BRIC funds are besides waiting connected reimbursements for hazard mitigation funds that FEMA promised pursuing earthy disasters successful those communities. Delays with those checks are putting immoderate agrarian counties successful a existent fiscal bind, sources archer CBS California Investigates. 

Emergency absorption sources accidental FEMA's unit covering California projects has been importantly chopped down, which could origin much delays.

Currie believes the delays could permission Californians astatine risk. 

"The longer it takes to decorativeness a resilience project, the greater the risk, wherever that task is," Currie said. "You person to remember, I mean, the full intent of these projects is to trim risk. So, if you don't instrumentality them, oregon they're not done, the hazard doesn't change."

In Orange County, a BRIC assistance has already funded signifier 1 of a project to physique an elevated berm and vegetated soil dunes to support a information of Capistrano Beach from much aggravated flooding.

The operation signifier — the signifier for which FEMA is expected to wage $9,377,094 — is scheduled to statesman adjacent year, the region says. 

But with FEMA's backlogs, immoderate experts fearfulness signifier 2 for projects similar the 1 successful Capistrano Beach — and others successful California — could instrumentality a batch longer to determination forward, and with flooding battering the seashore this year, moving rapidly is critical.

In October, Orange County Parks acquired an further assistance to supplement the BRIC project. 

"The $2.4 cardinal assistance from the Ocean Protection Council helps to offset the County's expenses to conception the Nature Based Shoreline project, and is meant to supplement the national BRIC funding, not regenerate it," a spokesperson for OC Parks wrote to CBS California Investigates successful a written statement. 

Some homeowners successful the country are hoping for arsenic galore formation restoration projects arsenic possible. 

Asked astir the delays to projects nationwide, Capistrano Beach homeowner Natalie Driessen said,  "it's horrible, you know, and I don't deliberation it's right, and it's sad."

She says the formation successful beforehand of her Capistrano Beach location has changed dramatically since she bought it 3 years ago. Her location is present yellow-tagged, and she's searching for answers to support her assemblage from further damage.

"I deliberation we conscionable person to beryllium humanitarians again," Driessen said. "I deliberation we request to beryllium fiscally responsible, but we request to beryllium humanitarian, and if determination are funds, we request to assistance people."

Despite this backlog of hundreds of projects nationwide sitting unpaid, FEMA conscionable enactment retired a telephone for much applications this fall.

Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-San Bernardino) says helium intends to get answers from FEMA astir the delays.  

"From the beginning, Donald Trump has played authorities with catastrophe relief. He has continued to merchandise wealth for projects successful Republican-held states and districts portion leaving billions successful assistance requests unanswered from California," helium said successful a written connection to CBS California Investigates. "Nearly 2 years aft the devastating January 2025 wildfires that ravaged Southern California, families are inactive near waiting for help. Disaster assistance should not beryllium connected your zip codification oregon governmental affiliation."

CBS California Investigates reached retired to FEMA for a comment, but has not yet received a response. 

In a missive dated September 2, 2026, Jeffrey Bobich, FEMA's enforcement manager of fiscal absorption and systems, wrote to the GAO concurring with the GAO's recommendations. 

"FEMA is exploring opportunities to streamline the BRIC sub exertion process and expedite task reviews, portion maintaining due programme oversight and compliance with applicable statutory, regulatory, and argumentation requirements," Bobich wrote. "These efforts are intended to amended the applicant's experience, enactment timely grant decisions, and assistance guarantee mitigation investments are delivered efficiently to communities."