N.J. Democratic delegation asks President Trump to reverse FEMA aid rejection for deadly February snowstorm

Every Democrat in the New Jersey congressional delegation signed a letter to President Donald Trump asking him to reverse his rejection of disaster aid for a deadly blizzard earlier this year.

The lawmakers sent the letter, which was first obtained by The Inquirer, to the White House on Friday in support of Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s appeal of the president’s rejection. Their plea comes after Trump denied an $84 million request to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for relief for a late February blizzard earlier this month.

“Severe blizzard conditions led to widespread damage—overwhelming State and local capacity,” the lawmakers wrote. “Tragically, this fatal event resulted in 12 confirmed weather-related fatalities across nine counties, the most out of any impacted state.”

The letter was led by U.S. Sens. Cory Booker and Andy Kim, both Democrats. All members of the New Jersey delegation were invited to join, Booker’s office said, but all three of the state’s Republican members opted out. Even U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, a South Jersey Republican, sat out of the effort despite initially backing the request in April.

Van Drew joined Booker, Kim, and six Democratic House members in an April letter of support for the request in which they said the public assistance and hazard mitigation funds “are crucial to the recovery of the communities” impacted by the storm.

The request sought money for every county in Van Drew’s district for costs related to the snowstorm, including damage from moderate coastal flooding in Atlantic County and his home county of Cape May. Van Drew, a Trump ally and former Democrat, faces a challenge from Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock for his reelection in November.

Van Drew did not respond to a request for comment.

In the Friday letter, the Democratic lawmakers’ tone was direct but they did not reference accusations that Trump’s decision was politically motivated. Those concerns come amid a revelation that the Trump administration has been rejecting Democratic states at a particularly high rate. A Wednesday Politico report found Trump recently overrode regional FEMA assessments when he rejected aid for four Democratic states.

The request included assistance for the vast majority of the state’s counties – including all of South Jersey – as well as hazard mitigation funding statewide, according to the Friday letter. Preliminary damage assessments across those 19 counties documented “extensive emergency work” such as snow and debris removal and “damage to critical infrastructure and public facilities.”

The New Jersey Office of Emergency Management estimates that disaster costs will exceed $100 million, which is more than five times more than the state’s threshold of about $18 million to qualify for federal disaster assistance.

“The extent of the damage, the operational burden throughout the State, and the cumulative impacts of recent and related extreme weather all provide overwhelming evidence that New Jersey’s request must be granted,” they wrote. “While we commend the actions of the State and local governments to respond thus far, full recovery will require your approval of federal resources.”

The lawmakers cite National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration data that found approximately 24 inches of snow fell in less than 24 hours across central and eastern parts of the state, and eight of the state’s 21 counties recorded record or near-record snowfalls.

Power outages during the storm impacted more than 127,000 customers in the state and there were 544 motor vehicle accidents and 1,518 motor vehicle-related assists, according to the letter.

They also argued that Trump should consider that the state already had a “strained capacity to respond” because of another severe snow and ice storm weeks earlier, as well as six open federal disaster declarations — in reference to prior disasters for which the state is still working on recovery projects.

“We look forward to working with you to ensure all Americans receive protection and support from the federal government in the aftermath of a serious disaster,” they wrote.

On Thursday, Sherrill spokesperson Sean Higgins noted in a statement that the costs of the February snowstorm “didn’t care about political boundaries” and that the governor will fight for funding “regardless of political party,” in a nod to the accusations Trump is putting his thumb on the scale based on partisan favoritism.

White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a statement Thursday, before receiving the letter, that the president “provides a more thorough review of disaster declaration requests than any Administration has before him” and that he responds to FEMA requests “with great care and consideration, ensuring American tax dollars are used appropriately and efficiently by the states to supplement—not substitute, their obligation to respond to and recover from disasters.”

She also said the Trump administration is committed “to empowering and working with State and local governments to invest in their own resilience before disaster strikes, making response less urgent and recovery less prolonged.” The Trump administration previously tried to cut disaster prevention funding because it was too “focused on ‘climate change” before a group of states including New Jersey sued.

Kim, the ranking Democrat on the committee that oversees FEMA, said in an interview Thursday that he is concerned that politics were involved in the latest rejection but couldn’t say for sure.