Jun 17
The Destruction of Disaster Relief: The Trump Administration’s Attack on Emergency Disaster Preparedness and Relief Aid

In 2024, the United States experienced 27 weather and climate disasters with at least $1 billion in damages, second only to the record-setting 28 $1 billion disasters in 2023. These extreme weather and climate events such as wildfires, floods, severe storms, and tropical cyclones will continue to increase in both frequency and intensity over coming years and pose an ever-growing threat to communities across America.

As the United States enters hurricane season and hot summer months, the Trump administration has cut billions of dollars in funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). President Donald Trump has suggested disbanding the agency, and U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem testified before lawmakers that FEMA should be eliminated. Emergency disaster relief workers do not only respond to ongoing weather crises—they are also instrumental in helping communities to prepare for and reduce vulnerabilities to disasters. Without adequate funding, communities across the United States will suffer as the burden of response to disasters and associated costs shift to states that are not equipped to handle them.

Please join the Center for American Progress to hear from experts with firsthand experience responding to extreme disasters across the country on how the Trump administration’s harms to federal disaster relief will affect Americans and how we can keep up the fight against these disastrous policies.