Noem Continues Bad Track Record with Natural Disasters

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 7th, 2025

SIOUX FALLS, SD – DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has turned her back on South Dakota. Because of Noem and the Trump Administration, several cities and counties will no longer receive nearly $9 million in Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities grants to reduce the damage done by natural disasters.

"Last year, then-Governor Noem abandoned flooded neighborhoods in favor of a political fundraiser and refused to deploy the National Guard. Now she's taking federal money away from communities that want to mitigate storm damage because she thinks it's 'wasteful' and 'ineffective'," said SDDP Chair Shane Merrill. "Because of these cuts, city and county leaders will now have to scramble to either figure out where the rest of the money will come from, or ditch their projects altogether, leaving their communities vulnerable to disasters."

"This is yet another example of the chaos and uncertainty of the Trump Administration that is hurting us right here in South Dakota. BRIC was started during Trump's first term and boosted by President Biden. It's a bipartisan program that has been popular since it was created. It makes no sense why it is now considered to be 'ineffective' when it is being used to protect people's lives."

For questions, you can contact the SDDP Executive Director Dan Ahlers at dan@sddp.org or contact the state party office by phone at 605-271-5405 or 605-940-3071.

Paid for by the South Dakota Democratic Party | www.sddp.org