WASHINGTON D.C. — Today, Rep. Dale Strong (R-AL), chairman of the Subcommittee on Emergency Management and Technology, delivered the following opening statement during a hearing to evaluate the current role of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), particularly its handling of taxpayer dollars, expanding mission sets, and its coordination with state and local governments in response to natural disasters and emergencies.

Watch Chairman Strong’s full opening remarks during a Subcommittee hearing entitled “Future of FEMA: Perspectives from the Emergency Management Community.” 

As prepared for delivery:

Good morning and thank you to everyone for joining us today for this first hearing of the Committee on Homeland Security’s Subcommittee on Emergency Management and Technology in the 119th Congress.
 
With over four decades of experience as a first responder, having served the people of Alabama as both an EMT and volunteer firefighter, I am honored to serve as Chairman of this Subcommittee. I am committed to using this Subcommittee to advance the cause of first responders and emergency managers across the nation, making sure they are prepared and resilient against all challenges.
 
I also wish to congratulate my colleague across the aisle, Mr. Kennedy of New York, on his role as Ranking Member.  I look forward to working with you as we strive to ensure our communities are prepared to prevent, respond to, and recover from emergencies and disasters.
 
I’d like to welcome back Mr. Brecheen of Oklahoma. And finally, I want to welcome the newcomers to the Subcommittee and to Congress––Mr. Evans of Colorado, Mr. Mackenzie of Pennsylvania, and across the aisle, Ms. Johnson of Texas, and Mr. Hernández of Puerto Rico. 
 
I look forward to working with all of you this Congress to do the work of securing our homeland. In the interests of ensuring our homeland is resilient and prepared for all types of disasters, it is fitting that this Subcommittee’s first hearing is on FEMA––the nation’s primary disaster relief agency. 
 
FEMA oversees national preparedness grants and federal disaster assistance, coordinates relief efforts, and ensures our nation is able to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters. 
 
Recent events have overwhelmed our states and localities and challenged their ability to mobilize and help their communities. In 2024 alone, FEMA responded to and administered resources for 100 Major Disaster Declarations.
 
According to NOAA, natural disasters last year caused 568 fatalities and damages totaling approximately $182.7 billion dollars. Hurricanes Helene and Milton alone devastated the East Coast, causing 251 deaths and $113.9 billion dollars in damages.
 
Beginning in January of this year, fires in Los Angeles County and southern California caused damage and economic loss that is projected to be between $250 billion and $275 billion dollars, which would make it the costliest single disaster in our nation’s history, surpassing the record set by Hurricane Katrina.
 
Our states and localities deserve all the help they can get in protecting people’s lives and property against deadly disasters. The aid that FEMA delivers before and after disasters is greatly appreciated and greatly needed. But as recent events demonstrate, there is room for improvement.
 
We must ask: what efficiencies can be found and what reforms should be implemented to create a better emergency management enterprise? And how can FEMA be improved to better support those on the ground and disaster survivors?
 
I applaud President Trump’s January 24th Executive Order to convene a FEMA Review Council composed of individuals with expertise in disaster response and recovery, who will be tasked with providing recommendations on reform to FEMA. 
 
Even the best government agencies are in continual need of reform, and FEMA is no exception. The purpose of this hearing is to solicit feedback from stakeholders within the emergency management community that can help guide President Trump’s FEMA Review Council as it explores what aspects of FEMA deserve the most reform. 
 
I thank the witnesses for their perspectives and for being here today. As we begin our conversation, there are a few areas of potential reform which I would like to highlight. 
 
FEMA’s mission set has expanded greatly in recent years to include tasks beyond preparing for and responding to traditional disasters. 

For example, FEMA assisted the federal government’s efforts in providing shelters and supplies to UACs from the Southwest border. It also supported the Department of Homeland Security in the resettling of Afghan refugees via Operation Allies Welcome.
 
Since 2019, FEMA has been administering funds to local governments and nonprofit groups to offset the costs of humanitarian relief efforts of caring for migrants, at first through the Emergency Food and Shelter Program-Humanitarian, and, since 2023, the Shelter and Services Program.

As the border crisis ballooned during the Biden Administration, I wonder how much time was wasted administering this program when the FEMA workforce was already stretched thin.

As we contemplate how best to reconfigure or establish efficiencies within FEMA to support its operations, we must ask whether FEMA’s expanding mission set has slowly exhausted the agency’s resources and workforce, preventing it from completing its core mission to the highest level of sufficiency.
 
In addition to FEMA’s “mission creep,” there are concerns that FEMA has also enabled a certain degree of waste. 
 
A GAO report found that FEMA mishandled the administration of funds for its COVID-19 Funeral Assistance Program, with at least $4.8 million dollars being approved for duplicate or ineligible applicants. 
 
I look forward to our witnesses’ thoughts on how to make FEMA as efficient as possible while still allowing it to carry out the fullness of its duties. It is also of great importance that FEMA avoid any appearance of partisanship. 
 
Following Hurricane Milton last year, a FEMA employee improperly and illegally instructed canvassers not to go to houses displaying signs of then-presidential candidate Trump, disregarding FEMA’s mission of supporting every disaster survivor. 
 
As I’m sure we can all agree, FEMA mustbe impartial in the performance of all its duties. The FEMA Review Council will also consider various structural changes to FEMA, as indicated in President Trump’s Executive Order. 
 
Some have suggested that FEMA should be removed from the Department of Homeland Security, once again making it an independent agency with direct access to the President. 

I look forward to hearing our witnesses’ perspectives on this matter, and whether they think this move would have a positive effect on FEMA’s efficiency and ability to operate, as well as potential challenges this could create.

Finally, it is evident that state and local governments have become increasingly reliant on FEMA to meet critical disaster response needs. I invite our witnesses to offer suggestions on a more appropriate structure of burden sharing between the federal government and state and local governments to best position them to respond to disasters.

Again, I thank each of you for being here today, and I look forward to hearing your testimony on these and other issues to inform the work of the FEMA Review Council as they seek to reform FEMA to better serve the American people.

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