4 days Ago
Experience and Intentions Ambiguities
Richardson’s statement about hurricane season, which started Sunday, baffled many staff members. Some thought it was a joke, others weren’t so sure, particularly given that Richardson doesn’t have any experience overseeing natural disasters. A source in the Department of Homeland Security clarified afterward that the comment was a joke, and FEMA still plays a significant role in response to disasters.
Richardson, however, has brought up FEMA hurricane preparedness in several recent meetings, despite the controversy. On assuming his post, he promised to pursue the current administration’s agenda vigorously, informing staff that he would “get in the way and run right over” anyone standing against the president’s mission. Most of the officials there now have no background in disaster management. Several of those are Homeland Security officials who have since been put in top roles at FEMA.
Shifts in Plans and Labor Problems
At the same Monday briefing, Richardson also said that FEMA would not be issuing a new plan for disaster response during the hurricane season this year. Instead, the agency will use its 2024 procedures. The move comes as the president continues to shake up FEMA and form a FEMA Review Council.
FEMA is in crisis internally, with a diminishing workforce. About 10 percent of its staff has departed since January, and trends are expected to push for an even more expansive exodus, almost 30 percent, by year’s end. That could cut the FEMA workforce from roughly 26,000 to about 18,000, making it less able to respond to a crisis.
Complicating the picture, Richardson recently nixed the agency’s 2022-2026 strategic plan, deeming it off base from FEMA’s mission. That action, along with leadership changes and staff cutbacks within the agency, has left some in the agency with more uncertainty over its direction as hurricane season starts.
