reforming fema--who will win?

There are three different “courses of action” in play right now for what the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will look like in the future.

First, you have the council that was established to look at the future of FEMA. Their report to the President has been delayed to sometime in December.

Then, you have whatever the President and the Secretary of Homeland Security have up their sleeves. Eliminate FEMA altogether? The public announcements on FEMA’s future have blow with the wind and the day.

More recently you have this, ‘FEMA Act’ lead sponsor bullish on Senate, White House support  While a sponsor may be “bullish” on White House support, we have seen that the whims of the day can determine many outcomes when it comes to the President’s druthers.

I can’t predict any of the above. We live in uncertain times with uncertain outcomes. Legislation vs. personal preferences might just be desirable. At the end of the linked article there is this:

“Meanwhile, House Democrats have been highly critical of changes at FEMA under the Trump administration. In a Nov. 3 letter to David Richardson, the senior official performing the duties of the FEMA Administrator, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Ranking Member Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) asked for more information about changes at FEMA under the Trump administration.

Garcia and Oversight Democrats have been investigating several issues at FEMA, including waves of staffing departures and alleged reprisal against whistleblowers.

“The purge of the nonpartisan, career civil service by the Trump administration – including through reduction in force efforts, the wasteful deferred resignation program, and illegal firing of probationary employees – is straining FEMA’s workforce and leaving fewer staff available to be deployed to disasters,” Garcia wrote. “The administration’s efforts to cut costs and shrink the agency have also contributed to a wave of additional resignations and retirements, adding to the strain on the workforce and resulting in fewer senior and experienced leaders and significantly harming morale across the agency.”

This last quote is something I can heartedly agree with!