Tom covers the federal response to climate change, focusing on FEMA, the Army Corps of Engineers and other disaster-response agencies. He worked previously at USA Today, BuzzFeed News, Newsday and several local newspapers. He was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2012 and has won other national journalism awards including from the Scripps Howard Foundation, the National Press Club and the Society of American Business Editors and Writers. He has a bachelor's degree from Wesleyan University in Connecticut.
Climate change is driving up the costs of disasters across the nation. But federal money for fortifying homes is going unspent because of daunting complexities within the program.
A Texas emergency management official yesterday assailed a federal proposal to reduce disaster relief in future years, saying it would be "devastating" to the state and its communities.
The Texas Division of Emergency Management warned publicly in 2018 that winter storms could "cause widespread power outages" and that the state must ensure "continued operation of utility systems" after disasters such as the recent freezing weather that triggered outages.
Climate change will cause the total annual flood damage to U.S. homes to rise to $32 billion by 2051, a 60% increase from the current level of $20 billion a year, according to new projections by a flood-forecasting group.
The federal government soon will run out of money to pay for disaster expenses including emergency shelter, food and medicine, according to a new report that puts pressure on Congress to approve another round of funding.