The Trump administration’s effort to cancel a nearly $1 million grant for a Lehigh Valley trail project through Easton is not going down without a legal fight.
Attorneys general from more than 20 states, including Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C., have filed a federal lawsuit challenging billions of dollars in funding cuts made by the Trump administration that would fund everything from crime prevention to food security to scientific research.
An $830,862 grant earmarked for Easton was the only affected Lehigh Valley grant included in the 88-page court complaint, according to Manuel Bonder, a spokesperson for Gov. Josh Shapiro.
The lawsuit, which Bonder said was recently amended to include the Easton grant, says Pennsylvania received notice May 22 that the Interior Department planned to terminate the funding because the award “no longer effectuates” agency priorities.
The grant was for the acquisition of five parcels of land and a trestle bridge in Easton, property currently held by the Belvidere and Lehigh River Railway, according to the state.
It would have let officials create a trail extension from Mount Ida in the city to near the Lidl supermarket in Wilson, city Administrator Luis Campos previously said. It also included:
- connecting downtown Easton with the Two Rivers Trailway through a pair of parcels owned by other municipalities;
- allowing the city to preserve 19 acres of green space near the city’s downtown; and
- positioning Easton to pursue the second phase of rail corridor acquisition — five additional parcels privately owned — to create a connection to the Delaware & Lehigh National Historic Corridor at Hugh Moore Park.
Easton Mayor Sal Panto Jr. said he hopes the city eventually wins back the grant.
“These are grants that were very competitive,” he said. “We won it on a competitive basis, and then it was pulled away.”
Panto equated the clawback of the grant to if he negated a grant or other funding for a project that a previous mayor had secured.
“I don’t think it’s right at all,” he said.
Campos previously said the loss of federal dollars would not derail the project, because it still requires “due diligence.” For example, he said, the city still needs to work on engineering reviews of bridges that would be converted for pedestrian use to make sure they are structurally sound.
The city also plans to look for other revenue sources to make up the funding loss, he said.
The Trump administration defended the move.
“The Department of the Interior is committed to fiscal responsibility, operational efficiency and government accountability,” spokesperson Elizabeth Peace said in an email. “Under President Donald J. Trump’s leadership, we are cutting unnecessary costs and ensuring every dollar serves a clear purpose. By streamlining operations and focusing resources on conservation, responsible energy development and public land protection, we are prioritizing taxpayers while upholding our mission.”
Peace did not answer specific questions about the funding.
Easton’s grant was to be filtered through the Department of Interior and the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
A spokesperson for U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-7th District, said a legislative aide was looking into the lawsuit.
A recent Associated Press story said the lawsuit seeks to limit the Trump administration from relying on an obscure clause in federal regulation to cut federal grants that don’t align with its priorities.
The city’s trail system, which besides the Two Rivers Trailway includes the D&L and Karl Stirner Arts trails, offers roughly 30 miles of hiking and biking paths.
Contact Morning Call reporter Anthony Salamone at asalamone@mcall.com.
