From History Today:

Elevating Emergency Management to the Executive Suite

The Strategic Imperative of Emergency Management Leadership

“Emergency management is one of the most consequential functions in state government, yet in most states it is not positioned that way. Today, only about 27 percent of state emergency management directors report directly to their Governor. The rest operate through additional layers of bureaucracy, despite being responsible for coordinating life-saving decisions during disasters. This column makes a straightforward business case: state emergency management directors should work directly for the Governor, with full executive-level access, because the mission demands speed, clarity, authority, and leadership at the highest level of government.”

From AP News: FEMA staff reductions paused during winter storm will resume

“The Federal Emergency Management Agency will resume staff cuts that were briefly paused during January’s severe winter storm, according to two FEMA managers, stoking concern across the agency over its ability to address disasters with fewer workers.”

From HSNW: States Reeling from Winter Storm Encounter a Smaller FEMA
“The Trump administration was quick to mobilize initial aid, but it’s not clear how a shrunken agency will handle the long-term recovery costs.

States slammed by a deadly, multiday winter storm that left hundreds of thousands of people without power in bitter cold are looking to a slimmed-down Federal Emergency Management Agency for support.

The immediate aftermath of the wide-sweeping storm — and the recovery process on the horizon — will provide another test for the second Trump administration’s reshaped disaster response agency.

Trump has approved emergency declarations for 12 states. That opens pathways for state governments to access federal assistance for immediate, life-saving needs, at FEMA’s discretion. The declarations allow hard-hit states such as Tennessee, Louisiana and Mississippi to tap into federal resources as state and local governments work to restore power, clear roads, and otherwise lessen the disaster’s overall impact.”

From NRDC: Death by a Thousand Cuts: FEMA Under the Second Trump Administration. The agency’s mission is simple: to help people before, during, and after a disaster. This administration is making that almost impossible.

“In a year, the Trump administration has crippled the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) through indecision, layers of bureaucracy, and massive staff loss. The American public is now faced with a FEMA that is too buried in paperwork to respond, too afraid to act, and increasingly too depleted to lead. Communities reeling from catastrophes are left asking: “Will FEMA be there to help?” And increasingly, the answer is “no.”

From Politico: Internal report urges Trump to transform disaster aid

The FEMA Review Council recommends replacing the decades-old system for distributing money to states with a plan triggered by weather conditions, not monetary damage.

The Diva just came across a new resource, an online newsletter published by an experienced emergency manager. See:  Emergency Management Solutions
by Lucien Canton

From the NYTimes: Extra Scrutiny of FEMA Aid to States Has Created a $17 Billion Bottleneck,  Additional layers of review ordered by Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, have slowed assistance to disaster-struck communities.

“About $17 billion in federal disaster funds for states is getting an extra layer of review by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, causing unusual delays in payments, according to internal Federal Emergency Management Agency documents reviewed by The New York Times.

The delays stem from a directive issued by Ms. Noem in June that said any expenditure of $100,000 or more must be approved by her office, which oversees the disaster agency, to root out “waste, fraud and abuse.”

The bottleneck includes money that had already been approved by regional FEMA offices for things like debris removal and repairs to roads, bridges and water and sewer systems.”

From HStoday: PERSPECTIVE: A Canceled FEMA Review Leaves Disaster Preparedness in the Dark

“As communities across the nation brace for another year of hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and extreme heat, the nation’s disaster-response system needs clarity, not suspense. Yet just one hour before the FEMA Review Council was set to convene publicly and release recommendations after ten months of work, the White House canceled the meeting. That decision leaves officials at every level planning in the dark about FEMA’s future authorities, priorities, and resources.”

From WashPost: DHS pauses cuts to FEMA as massive winter storm barrels in

On Thursday night, the Department of Homeland Security’s head of human resources sent an email saying FEMA decided that the agency would halt their process of non-renewing dozens of federally funded employees.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2026/01/24/live-updates-winter-storm-snow-ice-travel-impact/#link-3XYEVS5GZZC5NAXWVZ6FYTW25M

From HSToday: PERSPECTIVE: A Canceled FEMA Review Leaves Disaster Preparedness in the Dark.  Some excerpts:

“As communities across the nation brace for another year of hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and extreme heat, the nation’s disaster-response system needs clarity, not suspense. Yet just one hour before the FEMA Review Council was set to convene publicly and release recommendations after ten months of work, the White House canceled the meeting. That decision leaves officials at every level planning in the dark about FEMA’s future authorities, priorities, and resources.”

Over the course of 2025, the council heard from state and local officials managing increasingly frequent and complex disasters and reviewed public comments and operational data submitted through its formal process. According to multiple reports, that process changed minds. Rather than endorsing the wholesale dismantling of FEMA, the council’s draft findings reportedly reflected the agency’s continued relevance and the risks of weakening it. Those conclusions placed the council on a collision course with the administration that created it.

On December 10, CNN obtained a leaked draft of the council’s report. Within hours, the White House canceled the final public meeting where the council was scheduled to deliberate, vote, and formally present its recommendations. Officials cited the leak as justification, claiming the report was “not final.” Different accounts offered different rationales—from concerns about internal vetting to concerns about the leak itself—but the practical effect was the same: the council could not complete the public step that gives such reviews credibility.

What is unusual is canceling a public meeting after ten months of work especially when that meeting was the only mechanism through which the council could fulfill its mandate. Advisory councils do not exist to produce unofficial drafts. They exist to deliberate publicly, vote, and present recommendations to the president and the public.