Washington (May 6, 2025) - Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee released the following statement after the EPA terminated a $20 million grant for the City of Springfield and the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts that would have helped the city to advance environmental justice and climate resilience.

“The Trump administration is attempting to steal $20 million dollars from the people of Springfield to fund tax breaks for billionaires. 

“These funds were rightfully awarded through a rigorous review process to the Springfield community to help clean up polluted air and ease the burden of asthma that has long strangled children, seniors, and people of all ages as a result of generations of concentrated pollution. 

“One of the first awards of its kind in the nation, this grant includes initiatives to reduce reliance on dirty fossil fuels, expand the city’s urban tree canopy to reduce heat and clean the air, remove hazardous pollutants and restore dilapidated housing stock, provide career training for good-paying HVAC-R technician jobs, and more. 

“Once named the asthma capital of the nation, the Springfield community has worked hard to address this challenge, and the federal government should be helping them in this important work, not trying to stop it. This termination is wrong, and we will continue our work to restore this funding for the people of Springfield.”

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