Trump Administration Advances Plans to Eliminate FEMA Ahead of Hurricane Season
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirms efforts to dismantle FEMA, shifting disaster management to states and raising bipartisan concerns over preparedness and equity.
- The Trump administration, led by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, is actively pursuing the elimination of FEMA, aiming to reassign its functions and reduce the federal role in disaster management.
- Plans include narrowing FEMA's responsibilities to immediate disaster response and transferring long-term rebuilding and preparedness to individual states.
- Critics warn that dismantling FEMA could exacerbate inequalities in disaster response, leaving smaller or less-resourced states vulnerable as natural disasters become more frequent and severe.
- Bipartisan opposition is growing, with lawmakers and experts raising alarms about the potential impact on disaster preparedness, particularly with hurricane season approaching.
- The administration has also frozen disaster relief funds and cut anti-terrorism grants, further straining FEMA's capacity to address emergencies.
Grist 
