FEMA core functions ‘ground to a halt'
Sens. Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, Rep. Nick Begich the Third and Gov. Mike Dunleavy gushed with praise for themselves and Donald Trump after the president’s social media post saying he had approved a disaster declaration for Western Alaska. We should withhold the hosannas until we see if FEMA delivers.
For instance, Trump said he would make $25 million available.
But the FEMA press release doesn’t mention that.
Meanwhile, Trump is treating federal disaster responses like political favors he can give to his friends and deny to his enemies. He has just denied disaster aid to counties in western Maryland where there was major flooding.
“Many of FEMA’s core functions related to preparing for natural disasters and leading recovery efforts after they strike have ground to a halt as the Trump administration redefines the agency, according to more than a dozen FEMA employees and local officials, as well as a review of internal government documents,” the Journal said.
“Crucial contracts and grants haven’t been approved, caught up in layers of new bureaucracy. A wave of senior staff departed the agency when Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency offered buyouts, taking decades of experience with them. Around 400 FEMA employees have been detailed to work at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as that agency rapidly expands. And the administration has started dismantling the agency’s disaster-response infrastructure, which was strengthened in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.”
The Journal article highlighted how St. Louis is waiting for help from the damage caused last spring by a mile-wide tornado that had winds of up to 152 mph.
“The city has run into a problem that is plaguing the entire agency’s operations: A requirement that all spending of $100,000 or more go through a byzantine process for approval that involves up to a dozen layers of review.
“The process, instituted by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, is breaking down the agency’s ability to respond to disasters at every level, according to several FEMA employees and the review of documents.”
"As of early September, roughly 1,000 contracts and grants were pending approval—many of which are central to disaster response, the documents show. Now, at the peak of hurricane season, employees said they are spending the bulk of their work hours trying to get spending approved and coming up with contingency plans for entire programs that have been denied funding.”