Can President Trump Get Rid of FEMA? What We Know
President Donald Trump suggested on Friday that he was considering “getting rid of” FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) after visiting disaster zones in California and North Carolina.
“FEMA has been a very big disappointment,” the Republican president remarked. “It’s very bureaucratic. And it’s very slow.”
What Does FEMA Do?
The agency was designed to help the United States prepare for and recover from various natural disasters. FEMA works with local governments to help those who were impacted by a disaster, such as losing a home in a wildfire or a hurricane.
FEMA only steps into a local situation when a state makes a formal request to the government for federal aid or when the natural disaster overwhelms local officials’ abilities. The president must then sign a declaration affirming that the area would receive assistance.
FEMA is part of the Department of Homeland Security and relies on an annual operating budget and disaster relief fund, both of which Congress must replenish each year to support states in disaster recovery and preparedness efforts.
Can Trump Get Rid of FEMA?
President Trump does not have the unilateral authority to eliminate FEMA, according to current federal laws.
While the president can propose budget cuts or changes to agencies, the ultimate authority to pass laws—such as those that could reorganize or even eliminate FEMA—lies with Congress. To achieve such a change, Trump would need support from lawmakers, but both Republican and Democratic lawmakers have traditionally backed FEMA.
Trump has also expressed support for limiting the federal government’s role in disaster response, a sentiment he reiterated to reporters on Friday.
“I’d like to see the states take care of disasters,” he said in North Carolina. “Let the state take care of the tornadoes and the hurricanes and all of the other things that happen.”
“You want to use your state to fix it and not waste time calling FEMA. And then FEMA gets here and they don’t know the area. They’ve never been to the area, and they want to give you rules that you’ve never heard about. They want to bring people that aren’t as good as the people you already have. And FEMA has turned out to be a disaster.”
