President Donald Trump said Friday he is considering abolishing the Federal Emergency Management Agency and giving states full control over disaster recovery with federal cash.
“I think we’re going to recommend that FEMA go away,” Trump told reporters at Asheville Regional Airport in western North Carolina before he toured areas that were devastated by Hurricane Helene in September.
“I’ll sign an executive order to begin the process of reforming FEMA or getting rid of FEMA,” Trump said. “I think FEMA’s not good.”
FEMA has “turned out to be a disaster” and “a very big disappointment,” Trump added.
The agency, established in 1979 by President Jimmy Carter, provides tens of billions of dollars a year to help states and local residents recover from major disasters. FEMA leads federal disaster response, coordinates on-the-ground activities and can direct federal agencies including the military to help through activities such as airlifts.
Trump sketched out a new federal approach to natural disasters that would apparently be run through the White House.
“Rather than going through FEMA, it will go through us. And maybe this is a good place to start,” Trump said, referring to North Carolina.
Trump put Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley in charge of working on Hurricane Helene recovery with North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein, a Democrat. Whatley accompanied Trump to North Carolina.
Helene, one of the most destructive hurricanes in U.S. history, also damaged Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. Trump did not mention those states.
Trump was scheduled to fly to California later Friday to tour damage caused by the catastrophic wildfires in the Los Angeles area that have killed 28 people and are projected to cause as much as $250 billion in damage.
Trump’s comments Friday could fuel widespread concern that he would make federal disaster aid a political endeavor and punish governors who have opposed him. At the end of his first presidency, Trump refused to act on a request for disaster aid by then-Gov. Jay Inslee (D) of Washington due to a long-running dispute, POLITICO’s E&E News reported in October.
Trump said Friday he wanted to put states in charge of disaster recovery, while the federal government provides money — a format that resembles current practice.
“I like the concept when North Carolina gets hit, the governor takes care of it,” Trump said Friday.
FEMA has said for years that disaster recovery is led by states with assistance from the agency. Most of the billions of dollars that FEMA spends on disasters each year is paid as reimbursement to states for reconstruction projects. FEMA typically must approve each project that costs more than $1 million.
“When they come, they end up in arguments, they’re fighting all the time over who does what. It’s not a good system,” Trump said of FEMA.
Federal law gives the president wide authority over FEMA, including the choice of providing disaster relief through the agency or another office.
“As far as I’m concerned, I’m not really thinking of FEMA here,” Trump said in response to a reporter’s question in Asheville. “I’m thinking about Michael Whatley.”
Trump also mentioned North Carolina Republican Reps. Virginia Foxx, Chuck Edwards and Tim Moore, who represent the damaged areas, and said they and Whatley “will be working with the governor.”
