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On Wednesday, New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren both attacked Trump’s decision to pull money from FEMA’s disaster relief fund to pay for his anti-immigration efforts along the Southern border.
Does reprogramming these funds cut into money earmarked for Puerto Rico? And will it ultimately hurt FEMA’s ability to respond to catastrophic events?
Facts First: The answer to the first question is pretty clear, the reprogramming does not affect money allocated for Puerto Rico. The second is more complicated. While FEMA says that it has enough funds to successfully operate, disaster relief organizations and experts fear that moving the money might put FEMA’s response efforts at risk.
“This amount will be sufficient to support operational needs and will not impact ongoing long-term recovery efforts across the country,” FEMA said in a statement to CNN.
FEMA’s current budget runs through September 30.
Future disaster funding
Only about $14 billion of these funds have been spent.
What experts say
In a joint press release Thursday, the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) and International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) warned that “the reported reprogramming wantonly risks the ability for emergency managers to effectively respond to unforeseen events.”
In their statement, NEMA and IAEM noted that the effect might be small from an operations standpoint, but “any funds siphoned from the DRF reduce those funds immediately available to fight wildland fires, preposition equipment for hurricanes, and assist communities across the nation in advance of a known disaster.”
Other experts believe that FEMA’s funding is adequate despite this reprogramming but warn that predicting future needs for disaster relief is ultimately impossible.
“I would agree with FEMA’s current assessment, that they’re sitting fine as far as funding is concerned,” said Mark Misczak, former deputy director of FEMA’s Individual Assistance program and a senior managing director at the crisis management firm Witt O’Brien’s. “But future events between now and the end of September could change that. It depends on how many (disasters occur) and the severity.”
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