Padilla Secures Budget Director Nominee Commitment to Not Politicize Disaster Relief Funding

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) questioned Russell Vought, nominee for Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), on disaster relief funding to help Southern California wildfire recovery and rebuilding efforts during a Senate Budget Committee confirmation hearing. Vought previously served as Deputy Director and then Director of OMB during the first Trump Administration from March 2018 to January 2021.

As devastating wildfires continue to rage across Southern California, President Trump and Republican leaders in Congress have threatened to take the unprecedented step of conditioning aid to Californians as a bargaining chip for their partisan policy priorities. During his previous tenure with OMB, Vought tried on numerous occasions to withhold and slow the distribution of disaster relief and foreign aid, which was agreed to and appropriated by Congress, based on political motives.

Padilla cautioned Vought against politicizing or denying congressionally appropriated disaster funding for Southern California communities devastated by natural disasters. Vought gave Padilla his commitment that he would not politicize the matter and expressed his confidence that Trump would not withhold disaster aid from California, despite his recent and past rhetoric. Padilla said he would hold Vought to that commitment.

Padilla also criticized Vought for his chapter in the Project 2025 manual, where he wrote that the OMB Director should be "aggressive in wielding the tool of apportionments on behalf of the President's agenda," and "defend the apportionment power against attacks from Congress." Padilla emphasized the importance of Vought following the Impoundment Control Act, instead of continuing his record of blatant disregard for spending laws and operating as if the President has unchecked, unilateral power to make funding decisions.

Key Excerpts:

• PADILLA: I have to take this opportunity to echo Senator Peters who raised a specific concern during your hearing in the Homeland Security Committee last week, outlining the fact that your record is particularly concerning for disaster-impacted states, given your previous unlawful actions to politicize, withhold, and slow the distribution of disaster or even foreign aid.

• PADILLA: My question to you is this, Mr. Vought: If confirmed, will you or will you not politicize disaster funding and deny funds provided by Congress for American families and businesses that have been devastated by natural disasters?

• VOUGHT: Senator, I would not politicize the disbursing of federal funds in any capacity.

• PADILLA: That's great to hear, because you say you're going to implement the President's agenda, and I've been paying very close [attention] to his remarks since the outset of the devastating fires in Southern California these last few weeks. I'd like to ask you, Mr. Vought, will you commit to getting congressionally appropriated funding out to Californians devastated by these fires as quickly as possible?

• VOUGHT: Senator, this President has always been a firm distributor of federal resources to areas that need disaster money, and I don't expect that to change, and that has been, that's characterized my time at OMB the first time around. To your earlier question, I do support and will take an oath to uphold the Constitution, and that will continue if confirmed in this capacity.

• PADILLA: … Glad you're pledging to uphold the Constitution, because the Constitution and the law is clear as it pertains to the Impoundment Control Act. So unlike some of your clearly understood efforts in the first term, I hope you don't go back to those bad faith practices and efforts in the second term, and you're suggesting that you're not going to politicize the disbursement of funds. You're going to get them out the door as quickly as possible.

Senator Padilla has fought relentlessly to get Southern Californians desperately needed disaster relief aid. In the immediate aftermath of the Los Angeles fires, Padilla and Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) led 47 bipartisan members of the California Congressional delegation in successfully urging President Biden to grant Governor Gavin Newsom's request for a major disaster declaration to expedite timely relief to Los Angeles County residents impacted by these disasters. Last week, Padilla delivered remarks on the Senate floor urging his Republican colleagues and President-elect Trump to provide essential disaster recovery aid to California without conditioning it on the passage of partisan legislation. He also questioned Secretary of the Interior nominee Doug Burgum on his support for wildfire aid, securing his commitment to responding to wildfires regardless of which state they impact with all necessary resources and support possible. Additionally, Padilla introduced a package of three critical bipartisan bills to strengthen wildfire resilience and rebuilding efforts.

More information on the hearing is available here.

###