Bay Area lawmaker pushes back against Trump cuts after $50M loss threatens efforts to rein in coastal erosion

Rep. Sam Liccardo, D-San Jose, lashed out at President Donald Trump's cuts to programs combating climate change on Friday in Pacifica, where local officials and residents have been left scrambling to protect critical infrastructure after a long-anticipated $50 million federal grant to address severe coastal erosion along Beach Boulevard in Pacifica was scrapped.

The grant was part of the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program that was cut earlier this year.

"We have grave threats facing Pacifica—and those grave threats are the same threats facing our country," said Liccardo during a press conference along Pacifica's scenic shoreline. "Unfortunately, we have a president of the United States who is unwilling to stand with communities like Pacifica. These threats—coastal erosion, climate change, wildfires—are real."

The grant Pacifica was hoping for—part of the estimated $80 million total cost of the Beach Boulevard project—was intended to replace an aging seawall along the coast, among other measures to protect residents living nearby.

The BRIC program was canceled after the Federal Emergency Management Agency called the initiative "wasteful," according to an April 4 press release.

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