What FEMA's funds mean for the next disaster

Daily Mail​

13 hours ago

Published: |
After flooding hit Saint Ann and the greater St. Louis area in Missouri in 2022, Beth Gutzler received help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). 'Basements were flooded. I hate to say it, but that's almost become normal,' she mentioned. 'FEMA was the first person that I called,' she said. 'I have this memory of having emergency funds in my account within a week. I just have this memory of how it's supposed to be.'
Currently, Gutzler is having difficulty getting any response for assistance with damages caused by a tornado that struck the St. Louis area in March, impacting her new community of Florissant. Meanwhile, others across the state are also seeking help following another tornado that hit the region in May. 'There was absolutely no response from FEMA until weeks and weeks later,' she said. 'I would assume it's administration and their capacity.' Drawing on her background in customer service, she added, 'I know what you're taught to do if people call and you can't have answers for them. You're taught to just delay.'
As the Atlantic hurricane season begins in the eastern US and officials deal with with deadly flooding in Texas, FEMA is under increasing pressure, competing for limited resources amid broad federal staffing reductions. Experts are concerned that there may not be sufficient funding or personnel available when the next major disaster strikes. 'We know this is going to be an active Atlantic hurricane season,' said Shana Udvardy, senior climate resilience policy analyst with the Union of Concerned Scientists, a non-profit group. 'All we need is one big hurricane, and we're going to probably be in 'immediate needs' funding,' she said, referring to a special designation when disaster funds run low.
Disaster relief fund
Donald Trump has issued a disaster declaration following this month's devastating floods in Texas. This designation enables both public agencies and local residents to request federal assistance. However, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is already under significant financial strain due to a rising number of increasingly severe disasters. According to the latest estimates, its Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) could face a shortfall of approximately $1.6 billion to $2.3 billion by the end of September. Despite this, White House budget director Russell Vought stated that there are adequate funds available to respond to the Texas disaster.
He told reporters this month that 'FEMA has $13 billion in its reserves right now to continue to pay for the necessary expenses,' adding, 'The president has said to Texas anything it needs, it will get.' Still, should the disaster fund dip too low, the government would shift to an 'immediate needs' status—prioritizing only critical emergency expenditures while postponing other projects. 'It's just adding more stress for those states and local communities that are relying on this funding to come through,' Udvardy said. FEMA declined to comment on the matter.
States, municipalities, and non-profit organizations had been receiving enhanced support for disaster prevention efforts through initiatives such as the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program. However, in April, FEMA announced the termination of BRIC, labeling the program 'wasteful' and 'politicized,' and stated that any remaining funds would be redirected to the Disaster Relief Fund.
Several lawmakers in Congress have urged Trump to reinstate the program grants and are questioning whether staff reductions at FEMA and other federal agencies, such as the National Weather Service, hindered the response to the Texas flooding. The administration 'cannot ignore the fact that natural disasters are becoming more severe and more frequent due to climate change,' said Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, the ranking Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee.
'The president threatening to eliminate FEMA, firing scientists and muzzling experts helps no one and puts us all in danger,' Thompson said. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem commented on FEMA saying it has been 'disastrous' and 'incompetent' in some cases throughout the years, especially after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. 'It has been slow to respond at the federal level - it's even been slower to get the resources to Americans in crisis, and that is why this entire agency needs to be eliminated as it exists today and remade into a responsive agency,' she told the FEMA Review Council.
Local solutions
One approach the administration might take to preserve the relief fund is by reducing the number of major disaster declarations, though this essentially transfers the burden of recovery expenses to state and local governments. 'Certainly it appears that they are much less eager to provide disaster funding post-disaster, or at least declaring a major disaster,' said Steve Ellis, president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, a watchdog group. In response to the growing frequency and severity of climate-induced storms, wildfires, and hurricanes, nonprofit organizations, along with state and local authorities, have been developing their own strategies.