Baton Rouge Reporter

WASHINGTON, DC - Congressman Garret Graves (R-Louisiana) and Congressman Jared Moskowitz (D-Florida) have come together to introduce a bipartisan bill that aims to establish the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as a cabinet-level federal agency. This significant proposal is expected to greatly enhance FEMA's ability to effectively prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters.

Currently, FEMA operates within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), but bureaucratic obstacles within the department often hinder the agency's swift response when faced with a disaster.

"When a disaster threatens, we need action not bureaucracy. Having FEMA buried within the Department of Homeland Security only contributes to delays, lack of action, and do-loops. This experiment of putting FEMA under the Secretary of Homeland Security has failed. They can’t even handle the border. Americans deserve better. Louisianians deserve a FEMA that responds with the same urgency that they feel after a disaster. I am proud to work on this bipartisan bill with Rep. Moskowitz. It’s long overdue for FEMA to become an independent cabinet-level agency once again," Congressman Graves expressed.

"As the first Emergency Management Director ever elected to Congress, I have seen firsthand the challenges faced when responding to emergencies, recovering from them, and mitigating their impacts. That is why with my colleague Congressman Graves we have introduced legislation that will remove FEMA from DHS, returning it to being an independent federal agency — as it was originally intended. FEMA should not be 1 of 20 departments within DHS. There is no doubt that in the future FEMA will be busier than ever before and this move will help cut unnecessary red tape and make FEMA quicker," added Congressman Moskowitz.

The proposed legislation seeks to elevate FEMA by separating it from the control of DHS, thereby restoring the FEMA administrator's position as a cabinet-level role, as it was originally intended. Presently, DHS oversees more than 20 agencies, leading to excessive bureaucracy. When faced with critical decisions during times of disaster, speed is of utmost importance. Operating within a large bureaucracy hampers FEMA's ability to promptly respond to complex disasters and provide timely reimbursements to affected communities, hindering their recovery process.

Following the tragic events of September 11, 2001, Congress passed the Homeland Security Act of 2002, which established DHS to facilitate better coordination among federal agencies involved in law enforcement, disaster preparedness and recovery, border protection, and civil defense. Since then, the United States has confronted numerous natural disasters.

For additional information, the text of the legislation can be accessed here.