New FEMA Legislation Moving Through Congress

[Randy Zipser]

I just received the message below from my U.S. Congressman. At least something finally appears to be happening in the U.S. House of Representatives regarding a topic that many of us had been discussing for some time on this website. Naturally, I couldn't help but be amused that they named their legislation using "FEMA" as its acronym, which could easily be confused with the beleaguered agency having the same acronym. Just a coincidence...?

Dear Neighbor,

I want to share an important update on the Fixing Emergency Management for Americans (FEMA) Act, legislation I am proud to co-sponsor. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee recently advanced the FEMA Act out of committee, moving it one step closer to a full vote in the U.S. House of Representatives. This bipartisan bill delivers commonsense reforms to FEMA by streamlining disaster response and recovery, expediting the delivery of recovery grants, and returning greater control to states—while ensuring transparency and accountability every step of the way.

Florida has long set the gold standard for disaster preparedness and recovery programs, and many of the reforms in the FEMA Act are directly inspired by our state’s success. These include: a new pilot program to help families retrofit their homes for flood resilience, modeled after Florida’s ELEVATE and My Safe Florida Home programs, and the inclusion of the FEMA Loan Interest Repayment Act, which provides much-needed relief to local governments and electric cooperatives burdened by the financial strain of natural disasters. I look forward to supporting the final passage of this legislation, which will cut red tape, streamline FEMA operations, and ensure that emergency response is faster, more efficient, and more accountable to the American people.

 

[Mike Smith]

If they can keep the bill from being watered down, there is a chance that this may finally improve FEMA.

However, the bill will not work if they keep the same tired people in their middle-level positions. A housecleaning is needed. I realize this offends some but FEMA has been scandal-ridden and it is time for a completely fresh start.

Thanks for bringing this to everyone's attention, Randy.

 

[Randy Zipser]

You're welcome, Mike.

One further point about the message above. It's not that Florida necessarily handles natural disasters any better than any other state; what should not be lost in the message above (the Congressman is just "tooting his horn" for his constituency IMO) is that Florida handles natural disaster emergencies very efficiently and rapidly. Whatever this state's other faults, it has always handled hurricane and flooding disasters well, regardless of the party in office. My concern, however, is that what may work well in Florida for hurricanes may not necessarily be a good fit for handling tornadoes in Kansas or earthquakes/tsunamis/wildfires in California. If the ultimate goal from the Federal prospective is to shift the current functions of the FEMA agency to each of the states, we might end up with a patchwork of fifty different sets of state regulations which could actually hinder the rapidity of the response! In Florida, the manpower, funding, and plan of action are always at the ready, even outside the hurricane season. I trust that's the "blueprint for the nation" that the Congressman is referring to above.