CO Newsline: Trump denies FEMA assistance to western Colorado over Tina Peters

Lee Fire near Meeker, August 12, 2025 (Photo: Elk & Lee Fire Information Facebook page)

Republished with permission from Colorado Newsline. Authored by Lindsay Toomer, April 14, 2026

Colorado Newsline reports that the Trump administration notified Colorado Gov. Jared Polis Monday that it denied two disaster declaration appeals, which would have opened up federal funding to support wildfire and flood recovery in the state.

Polis, a Democrat, asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency to issue major disaster declarations last year for the Elk and Lee Fires in Rio Blanco County and for flooding in western Colorado. Declarations would have opened up FEMA funding to help Colorado communities recovering from the natural disasters. The denial means the affected communities will have fewer resources to recover from the disasters and build infrastructure to prevent future damages.

The state will explore “every available path” to support the communities, but the federal government is meant to be a reliable partner in disaster recovery, Polis said.

“Colorado communities have done everything right — responding quickly, documenting the damage, and working in good faith with federal partners — only for the Trump administration to deny funding to help Colorado communities recover,” Polis said in a statement. “These disasters caused real damage to homes, infrastructure, and local economies, and Coloradans should not be left to shoulder these costs alone.”

After the Trump administration in December denied Polis’ initial request, he filed an appeal in January. All 10 members of Colorado’s congressional delegation, Republicans and Democrats, supported the appeal.

In a joint statement, Colorado’s U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper said President Donald Trump alone is to blame for abandoning the federal government’s responsibility to support disaster recovery, which will lead to severe and long-standing consequences in Colorado.

“Disasters are disasters, regardless of state lines or political parties,” the senators said. “President Trump’s refusal to grant Major Disaster Declarations for the 2025 Lee and Elk Fires and the Southwest Colorado flooding is callous and leaves rural Coloradans, who urgently need support, vulnerable and footing the bill. Critical infrastructure remains unstable, costs continue to rise, and communities remain at risk.”

The Trump administration has repeatedly targeted Colorado, promising “harsh measures” if the state does not release election denier and former Republican Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters from prison, suing the state for refusing to share sensitive voter information, and suing the state for its immigrant protection laws. The president has also moved to terminate transportation funding for Colorado, close the National Center for Atmospheric Research and require updated eligibility interviews for people receiving federal food assistance.

The Lee and Elk fires grew rapidly and forced evacuations in and around the town of Meeker after lightning started the fires on Aug. 2. More than 1,200 firefighters were assigned to the fires at their peak intensity in mid-August, fueled by extreme drought and critical fire weather conditions. The fires led to more than $27 million in damage.

Flooding in Archuleta, La Plata and Mineral counties in October damaged more than 60 miles of road and associated culverts, drainage structures, and embankments. Drinking water and wastewater infrastructure as well as recreation infrastructure was also damaged. The floods have caused more than $13 million in damages.

The state, FEMA and affected local governments all jointly verified the cost of damage the disasters caused, the state said. Colorado has spent more than $57.5 million to support recovery from disasters since July 2024.

Kevin Klein, director of the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said that this is the first time in 35 years Colorado has been denied federal assistance as part of a major disaster declaration request.

“Our damage assessments documented and showed that each of the disasters exceeded the federal thresholds for assistance,” Klein said in a statement. “Our State Recovery Task Force will continue to work on alternatives to fill the gap, but providing substantial relief to the disaster survivors becomes much more difficult with this decision. I don’t want it to sound like we can just fill all the gaps — we can’t, but of course we will do our best to support them.”