Albany Leaders Seek Clarity After EPA Terminates Federal Grant Program
by Sam Israel
Fri, July 25th 2025 at 4:58 PM
Albany, NY (WRGB) — Local community leaders and Congressman Paul Tonko are seeking answers after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency terminated a nationwide grant program that was expected to bring millions of dollars to disadvantaged neighborhoods in Albany.
In May, the EPA rescinded funding for hundreds of community projects across the country, citing a reevaluation of its Community Change Grant program. Though it’s still unclear whether Capital Region organizations are among the confirmed cuts, some Albany-based nonprofits say the uncertainty has already forced them to scale back.
“We’re not going to be silenced. We’re not going to give up. And we’re not going to let Albany be forgotten,” Bobbi Wilding, the Executive Director of Clean + Healthy NY, said during a roundtable discussion held Friday at the Underground Railroad Education Center.
The roundtable brought together leaders from several local nonprofits and U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY), who said litigation is underway involving more than 350 grantees nationwide.
The ALL(bany) Together Project, a coalition of eight nonprofits, had been awarded a combined $20 million as part of the EPA’s Community Change Grant program, funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The grant aimed to support climate resilience, clean energy job training, housing repairs, and public health improvements in Albany’s Arbor Hill, South End, and West Hill neighborhoods.
Among the groups impacted is the Capital Area Urban League, which had been using the funds to provide free electrician training programs.
“I think it’s imperative to restore the funding for programs like this so it could give people like myself — or others from the urban community — the opportunity to better themselves,” said Khyri Oliver, a program graduate who credited the training with helping him start his own business.
Trinity Alliance, the lead applicant on the grant, was awarded $10.9 million to build community infrastructure for clean power access, food and water distribution, and health services in disaster-prone areas.
“The direct impact is the three disenfranchised communities — South End, Arbor Hill, and West Hill,” said Daquetta P. Jones-Johnson, CEO of Trinity Alliance.
In West Hill, Neighborhood Association President Tabora Marcus says the now-stalled funding would have gone toward critical home repairs for low-income seniors.
“It’s really impactful for the neighbors — especially the vulnerable population, which is our seniors,” Marcus said. “People are losing their homes. They don’t have the money on fixed incomes to make repairs, and when they fall behind on taxes, the county can take their homes.”
The Arbor Hill Development Corporation had been awarded $1.8 million to support housing rehabilitation in the West Hill area.
Tonko called the grant’s cancellation a “wrongful termination” and said he is pressing the EPA for clarity.
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CBS6 reached out to the EPA for comment. In a statement, a spokesperson said:
“Maybe the Biden-Harris administration shouldn’t have forced their radical agenda of wasteful DEI programs and so-called ‘environmental justice’ preferencing on the EPA’s core mission.” The agency added it would continue working with communities to support projects that align with its mission to protect human health and the environment.
