FEMA’s chaos has gone worse than bad
FEMA did not respond to Wired request for comment.
“It is not surprising that some of the same bureaucrats that have been presided over for more than decades are protesting reform,” the agency told the Guardian. “Change is always difficult. Especially for those invested in the status quo, they have forgotten that their task is to the American people who have not entered the bureaucracy.”
Targeting a letter signature in FEMA in July, when the agency suspended about 140 employees who have signed a similar public letter, repeat previous actions at the Environmental Protection Agency.
An FEMA employee who signed a letter this week expresses concern that the agency may try to search for those who have named them in the letter – especially given how DHS managed Players in April and tried to identify employees who leak to the press. They say “I’m worried that they may use similar tactics to identify anonymous signatories.” The employee spoke with wired on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to talk to the press.
On Tuesday morning, a day after the letter of staff, former FEMA actress, Cameron Hamilton, who was fired a day after his testimony to the agency to Congress in May, sent public criticism to LinkedIn.
He said: “FEMA works more efficiently, and there is a red bar cut: it is unaware of the disaster management; it is misled by government officials; or lying to Americans [sic] “President Trump and the American people are more deserving of … FEMA savings because of US astronomical debt,” he wrote. However, FEMA staff are now responding to completely new forms of bureaucracy that increase the time of waiting for the claimants. “
Hamilton tells Wired, “I did my post to clarify some of the statements in DHS, which I believe is incorrecting the problems of FEMA.” “I am disappointed with how FEMA has been beaten and firmly believes that the role of FEMA should be one of the excellence and success for the state.”
Both Hamilton’s posts and free letters call a new law established in June and are obliged to personally examine any cost that cost more than $ 100,000. FEMA employees in Monday’s letter claiming “will reduce FEMA officials and abilities to quickly provide our mission.” The policy was a fire in July after various media reported that it was delayed in response to the agency following the flooding in Texas, killing at least 135 people. The head of the Urban Search and Rescue Operations Agency resigned in late July, delaying aid during the disaster due to disappointment on how to delay the DHS cost approval process, CNN reported.
Contract data images seen by the wire show that the Agency still has more than $ 700 million to allocate non -disposal costs before the end of September 30, with more than 1,000 contract measures. The agency appears to feel the pressure to speed up the contract suggestions. In early August, several FEMA staff were asked to volunteer on the weekend to help review contracts to prepare them for NOEM registration. (“Many work over the weekend”, read the notes of a session.)
One of the FEMA employees says, “The disaster money is just sitting.” “Every day the applicants want to call their FEMA” Where is my money? “And we have been ordered to just say nothing and redirect.”
As stated in the free letter, almost one -third of FEMA employees had left until May, “led to the loss of unchangeable institutional knowledge and long -term relationships.” This departure may disrupt the agency’s efforts to implement financial productivity measures such as the contract. A former FEMA employee tells the Wired that while the Agency started the year with nine lawyers in the preparation team to help investigate financial contracts during a disaster, almost the whole team has either quit or re -appointed re -appointed, as she experiences the storm season.
The former employee tells Wired, “I don’t know what happens.”
Update: 8/29/2025, 2:30 pm Edt: This story has been updated by Cameron Hamilton.
