FEMA Review Council Meeting Cancelled Signaling Disaster for FEMA May Have Only Just Begun

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) review council was slated to vote today on a draft report recommending changes to the agency, but the meeting was unexpectedly cancelled at the last minute after details of the draft report were leaked. The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) has raised the alarm that this move could signal the Trump administration wants to go even further in their efforts to dismantle the agency that helps people across the country prepare for and respond to disasters when they strike.

Below is a statement by Shana Udvardy, a senior climate resilience policy analyst at UCS.

"The chaos and confusion around the FEMA review council report - from Secretary Noem's manipulation of the council's original report to the abrupt cancellation of today's meeting - is just the latest example of how the Trump administration has sought to undermine FEMA's effectiveness at every turn. Together with the administration's ongoing attacks on FEMA, this clearly highlights why Congress must step up to defend a robust and independent FEMA that serves the needs of people reeling from disasters.

"The council report recommendations as reported would gut FEMA, leaving states to shoulder the burden of disasters and putting disaster victims at risk of serious harm, especially those with the least resources. That means the next time a hurricane or horrific wildfires materialize we may again experience a disturbing FEMA fiasco on par with Hurricane Katrina, as FEMA staff warned about in their recent petition to Congress.

"Council members should release their original report. And Congress should provide oversight over Secretary Noem's handling of the council recommendations. FEMA's life-saving and critical work must be informed by the latest science and the perspectives of people on the frontlines of disasters, not destructive political agendas."

The FEMA review council was established by President Donald Trump via Executive Order earlier this year. News reporting suggests the draft report was heavily edited by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and now bears little resemblance to the original report compiled by the council. Secretary Noem has previously called for dismantling FEMA and has reportedly stripped the report down from 160 pages to just 20. If these altered recommendations are adopted, they would double down on the administration's actions to date that significantly undermine FEMA's ability to coordinate disaster response and preparedness and increase risks to the public, according to experts.