Byron Donalds fumes at FEMA ‘failure,’ says it must be ‘reformed’

'What is happening today with FEMA cannot be allowed to continue.'

The post Byron Donalds fumes at FEMA ‘failure,’ says it must be ‘reformed’ appeared first on Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..

---

A Congressman who would like to be the next Florida Governor is agitating for fixes to the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA).

During a Wednesday appearance on the Fox Business Network, Rep. Byron Donalds echoed calls from Gov. Ron DeSantis for reform to the agency, which has developed a reputation for politicized and delayed responses to natural disasters in Florida and beyond.

“We know that FEMA was discriminating against Donald Trump supporters, but we also know that FEMA is a very bureaucratic agency. It’s not been responsive to the needs of the American people at a time of crisis. They typically are slow to respond. They do a bunch of bureaucratic checks. They’re not doing reimbursements in a timely fashion,” Donalds said.

FEMA fired three supervisors connected to a political discrimination scandal following Hurricane Milton.

The terminations followed an investigation showing FEMA workers providing ground support to hurricane victims skipped past 20 homes because they had Trump signs displayed.

The three recent firings were in addition to FEMA supervisor Marn’i Washington, who was let go months prior shortly after the incidents were first reported.

While FEMA’s Office of Professional Responsibility “found no evidence that (discrimination against Trump supporters in Florida) was a systemic problem, nor that it was directed by agency or field leadership,” Donalds and other Republicans have argued differently. Attorney General and current Sen. Ashley Moody sued the agency for alleged discrimination in 2024.

Beyond politicized response, Donalds contends that the glacial pace of action has left constituents of his in the lurch.

“I still have local governments in my district from Hurricane Ian three years ago still waiting for FEMA reimbursements,” Donalds said. “Then when they make mistakes, they try to come in a lot later, apologize and act like nothing ever happened. It’s wrong, so FEMA must be reformed.”

Donalds alluded to a proposal favored by the current Governor, who says the state doesn’t “need” FEMA and could use federal money to manage its own response to natural disasters such as hurricanes.

“The President and his team (are) doing the right thing, actually having a council look at the ways to bring FEMA into the future, redesign the agency totally. I know people are talking about block granting FEMA to the states, letting governors have direct command and control of those dollars to marry them with state dollars to get people back on their feet, but what is happening today with FEMA cannot be allowed to continue.”

Donalds spotlighted issues from around the country, claiming FEMA has not been accountable.

“Ask the people in Western North Carolina. ask the people still trying to recover from Helene and Milton last year. They have done a bad job. They’re not going to report on themselves,” Donalds said. “They just want to poke holes in what we’re trying to do, and that is (to) reform FEMA or whatever it’s going to be called into the future, make it responsive so that when disaster strikes, communities in our country, there is the federal element that is quickly there to help people get back on their feet. I can talk about Maui. I can talk about East Palestine, Ohio. The list is long. It has been a failure.”