Members,
On Friday, leaders from IAEM, NEMA, and BCEM met with FEMA Administrator Criswell.
As we head into the busiest part of the 2024 hurricane season and the tail end of the fiscal year, Administrator Criswell informed us that on August 7 FEMA will move the Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) to “Immediate Needs Funding.”
FEMA does this when the DRF drops below $3 billion dollars. This is the earliest it has occurred in recent years, as disasters have increased in cost and frequency. Last year the DRF was in INF from August 29, 2023 through the beginning of the fiscal year on October 2, 2023.
According to the FEMA website:
When the DRF is projected to be insufficient to meet all Stafford Act requirements, FEMA must prioritize lifesaving and life-sustaining activities. Under INF, FEMA prioritizes response and urgent recovery efforts without interruption. However, new obligations not necessary for lifesaving and life-sustaining activities will be paused.
This means reimbursements for new lifesaving and life-sustaining activities will be funded as long as possible, but ongoing recovery projects will see delayed reimbursement.
With the current cost of disasters like a large hurricane, the DRF could be depleted with only one major storm.
There was news that FEMA has requested a $9 billion dollar funding supplemental specifically to add funding to the DRF. It was given to Congress at the end of June, but there was no mention of it in any of the appropriations markups that the House was reviewing before it left for recess this week. The Senate goes into recess this upcoming week. Neither will return until September 9. However, FEMA staff have little confidence the supplemental will be approved before the DRF is depleted or the new FY begins.
Call To Action
While your Representatives are at home in their districts is the perfect time to advocate for the support you need. Invite them to your EOC, for coffee, to an LEPC, or any other event or exercise you are having to get them engaged in the work you do and the challenges you face. Help them see that the decisions they make have tangible consequences at the local level. You don’t have to ask them to vote a certain way, just spend time educating them on what you do for the community.
To make it easier for you, below are some important resources for you:
The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management is the starting point in the House for all FEMA related policies and funding. Here are the members:
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Republicans:
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Democrats:
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Scott Perry (PA), Chairman
Garret Graves (LA)
Jenniffer González-Colón (PR)
Lori Chavez-DeRemer (OR), Vice Chair
Anthony D’Esposito (NY)
Derrick Van Orden (WI)
Mike Ezell (MS)
Celeste Maloy (UT)
Sam Graves (MO) (ex officio)
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Dina Titus (NV), Ranking Member
Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC)
Sharice Davids (KS)
Troy A. Carter (LA)
Grace F. Napolitano (CA)
John Garamendi (CA)
Jared Huffman (CA)
Rick Larsen (WA) (ex officio)
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In the Senate, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (HSGAC) is the primary point for funding and policies. The members are:
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Democrats:
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Republicans:
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Gary Peters (D - MI)
Thomas R. Carper (D - DE)
Margaret Hassan (D - NH)
Kyrsten Sinema (I - AZ)
Jacky Rosen (D - NV)
Richard Blumenthal (D - CT)
Jon Ossoff (D – GA)
Laphonza Butler (D - CA)
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Rand Paul (R - KY)
Ron Johnson (R - WI)
James Lankford (R - OK)
Mitt Romney (R - UT)
Rick Scott (R - FL)
Josh Hawley (R - MO)
Roger Marshall (R - KS)
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Click HERE for the contact information for your elected officials.
Our current Grant Funding Grassroots Campaign has some tools to assist.
We recently gave tips on Government Affairs Advocacy during a recent webinar.
We ONLY bring about change through action. We need to keep acting to ensure our programs and communities receive the funding they currently need to remain resilient.
We will keep you posted as we learn more. If you need help with your advocacy, please let us know. We would also love to hear about any conversations or interactions you have with your representatives.
Travis Cryan, MS, CEM – IAEM Chief of Staff travis@iaem.com
Thad Huguley – IAEM Director, Government Affairs thad@iaem.com
Mary Jo Flynn-Nevins, MS, CEM – Chair, Government Affairs Committee
Mick Fleming, CEM – Vice Chair, Government Affairs Committee
Spencer Hawkins, CEM, GA-CEM – Vice Chair, Government Affairs Committee
GovAffairs@iaem.com
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Travis Cryan, MS, CEM
IAEM Chief of Staff
travis@iaem.com------------------------------