Fourth circuit court upholds trump administration’s termination of environmental justice and climate grants, leaving cities and nonprofits without millions in funding

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has dealt a significant blow to environmental organizations and municipalities seeking to recover millions in federal grant funding that was terminated or frozen during the Trump administration. In a ruling this week, a three-judge panel—Paul Niemeyer, Allison Rushing, and Toby Heyten—overturned a lower court decision that had previously blocked the Trump administration from cutting funding for environmental justice, agricultural, and climate programs.

The appellate court’s decision affects six cities and 13 nonprofit organizations that had been working to recoup the lost funding. These grants supported critical environmental justice initiatives and climate programs that serve vulnerable communities across the country. The termination of this funding has left many organizations struggling to continue their environmental protection work and community outreach programs.

Despite this setback, some plaintiffs remain optimistic about their legal options. Their legal teams are exploring constitutional challenges to argue that the Trump administration’s elimination of entire grant programs that had been approved by Congress—particularly those focused on environmental justice—exceeded executive authority and violated constitutional principles.

The case highlights the ongoing tension between federal environmental policy changes and local communities’ needs for consistent funding to address environmental challenges. As these legal battles continue, affected cities and nonprofits must find alternative funding sources to maintain their environmental justice and climate resilience programs while awaiting potential future court decisions.