A Trump administration official said Wednesday that there are no plans to cut staffing at the Federal Emergency Management Agency despite reports that the agency’s staff level could be cut in half.
FEMA Associate Administrator Victoria Barton told a congressional hearing, “I’m not familiar with any current guidance as far as cutting the workforce by any sort of percentage.”
Barton also told the House Homeland Security Committee that FEMA’s financial reserves are “rapidly depleting” due to a lapse in funding for the Department of Homeland Security, which includes FEMA and has been partially closed since Feb. 14.
“Each day of this shutdown increases the risk that a catastrophic disaster could occur while FEMA’s capacity to respond and support recovery is diminished,” Barton said.
