The Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. agency responsible for disaster relief, is facing financial challenges ahead of Hurricane Milton’s landfall in Florida, as additional disaster funding is tied up in partisan power struggles in Washington. and facing staffing challenges.
Just two weeks after Hurricane Helen made landfall and devastated much of Florida’s Panhandle and southern Appalachia, parts of Florida’s Gulf Coast are bracing for a Category 3 hurricane. Nearly a dozen Florida counties have received evacuation orders in preparation for Hurricane Milton, which surprised meteorologists with its extremely rapid intensification and is expected to make landfall Wednesday night.
The one-two punch of multiple hurricanes is straining federal disaster relief resources. FEMA is working on Helen’s recovery as well. Wildfires burn in the WestAccording to , only 8% of the agency’s incident management staff are available to respond to new disasters. Daily work briefing for wednesday.
FEMA was facing funding problems long before Helen came along. A report on the status of the agency’s disaster relief fund at the end of August stated: FEMA expected to fall into deficit next month. A few weeks later, in September, Congress allocated $20 billion to emergency agencies as part of a stopgap spending bill to avert a government shutdown.
But the week after Helen made landfall, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, whose Cabinet office includes FEMA, said the agency: there won’t be enough money to get through the remainder of hurricane season, which lasts until the end of November. President Joe Biden has since He urged lawmakers to send more money the way FEMA did. This allows government agencies to avoid “unnecessary trade-offs” that divert resources from long-term recovery efforts to address immediate emergencies.
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It seems unlikely that additional funds will be available in time to impact Hurricane Milton recovery efforts. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson told Fox News. he has no intention of calling the House of Commons He said he was considering sending additional funds to FEMA after returning from October vacation and would not consider the issue until after the Nov. 5 election.
FEMA uses disaster relief funds for the following purposes: Pay for disaster relief and on-site debris removalrepair damaged public infrastructure and provide financial assistance to eligible victims. The average amount spent by the fund is $12 billion annually Between 1992 and 2021, 44% of that money went to hurricane relief.
But in the wake of the Helen incident, FEMA is facing a barrage of false rumors that disaster relief funds are being misused and directed to migrant housing. The agency clearly denied the allegations The website states: “This is incorrect. Funds will not be diverted to disaster response needs.” FEMA has a small grant program. 3% of annual budgetprovides humanitarian assistance to noncitizen immigrants being released from detention facilities, but this program is completely separate from the Disaster Relief Fund. Still, rumors about forgetting disaster funds have been fueled by right-wing agitators like radio host Alex Jones and Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who argue that FEMA is failing in its response to Helen. pouring oil on a simmering fire.
Rumors that the funds were diverted are unsubstantiated, but have proven to be deep-rooted after several Republican lawmakers spread misinformation. For example, Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn, who represents Tennessee, was asked why she voted against the Congressional emergency measure that would have provided $20 billion to FEMA, calling the bill “reckless” and saying that He said he would not provide it.people flying illegally into our country” Chairman Mike Johnson acknowledged in an interview on Fox News that, indeed, FEMA’s disaster relief and immigrant assistance funding comes from two different funding pools. continued to confuse the two efforts.
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Mayorkas withdrew his FEMA funding requirement as Republicans politicized disaster relief efforts. On Wednesday, the Secretary of Homeland Security said FEMA: “Quite clearly” has everything you need To respond effectively to Hurricane Milton. On the other hand, FEMA itself is quite neglected Pressure on staff. Administrator Dean Criswell told MSNBC: The agency is poised to respond to the needs of areas affected by Hurricane Milton. After all, disaster relief personnel are already on the ground in Florida as part of the Helen response.
When abnormal weather occurs, Worsened by climate change The need for disaster relief will continue to grow as it affects more regions of the country. On Wednesday, dozens of Democrats urged Johnson to reconvene the House of Commons To pass additional disaster relief funding. And some Republicans, including some who originally voted against the Congressional bill that would have sent $20 billion to the Emergency Management Agency, are now publicly calling for more funding for FEMA. Last week, Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna bipartisan bill Allocated $15 billion to FEMA and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to support Helen’s recovery efforts. “we need to free up FEMA dollars” Luna wrote in a tweet to Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Mr. Luna’s district includes much of Pinellas County, Florida, and is expected to be attacked by Mr. Milton.
Former Luna voted against Measures to fund FEMA through the end of the year.
