The Big Story 

A review of federal documents by The Hill shows that the administration denied such “hazard mitigation” funds to states after 16 out of 18 flood disasters during the Trump presidency, with both of the approvals coming before mid-March.

© Gerald Herbert, Associated Press

After the deadly Independence Day floods, the administration declined to provide Texas with access to a tranche of FEMA funds aimed at heading off the next disaster — money intended to pay for things such as warning systems, tornado shelters and anti-flood measures.

It’s not alone. 

In May, children in a Missouri elementary school sheltered from a tornado that shattered windows and ripped gutters off the building inside a safe room purchased with hazard mitigation money issued after the deadly 2011 Joplin tornado. 

Though the Trump administration approved Missouri’s disaster declaration, it refused the hazard mitigation funds the state requested to buy generators and more outdoor warning sirens, state officials told The Hill. Missouri is appealing that decision.

In neighboring Oklahoma, the Biden administration had in November approved hazard mitigation funding for wildfires and straight-line winds.

But even as those funds went out, more wildfires, driven by straight-line winds, were raging across the Sooner State. President Trump issued a disaster declaration on the last day of the weeklong emergency — but denied hazard mitigation funding.

It was the first time in at least 15 years that Oklahoma wasn’t approved for requested hazard mitigation, according to state emergency management officials.

This pivot — which breaks long-standing federal precedent — comes amid steep Trump cuts to FEMA, which he has also talked about eliminating entirely, as well as cuts to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the federal forecasting and research apparatus.

Read more here, from The Hill’s Saul Elbein. 

Welcome to The Hill’s Energy & Environment newsletter, I’m Rachel Frazin  — keeping you up to speed on the policies impacting everything from oil and gas to new supply chains.

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Essential Reads 

How policy will affect the energy and environment sectors now and in the future:

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What We’re Reading 

News we’ve flagged from other outlets touching on energy issues, the environment and other topics:

• ‘A more vulnerable nation’: FEMA memos lay out risks of plan to cut $1B in disaster and security grants (CNN)

• Corals keep cooking in climate-heated seas. These crossbreeds may keep hope alive (The Miami Herald)

• White House rescinds $20 million for clean water in pesticide-contaminated rural California (The Guardian)

What Others are Reading 

Two key stories on The Hill right now:

‘South Park’ creators double down on episode skewering Trump

“South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone had a simple response to the furor the often-controversial show stoked this week with an episode showing President Trump in bed with Satan and making fun of what they depicted as the president’s small genitals. Read more

Third court blocks Trump birthright citizenship order nationwide after Supreme Court decision

A third court ruled Friday that President Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order cannot go into effect across the country, following the Supreme Court’s decision last month clawing back nationwide injunctions.  Read more