Thompson, Kennedy Write DHS on Lack of FEMA Readiness Ahead of Hurricane Season

“FEMA is less prepared to respond than it has been in a generation” May 14, 2026 (WASHINGTON) – Today, Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Ranking Member of the Committee on Homeland Security, and Rep. Tim Kennedy (D-NY), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Emergency Management and Technology, sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) leader Robert Fenton urging immediate action to address FEMA's alarming lack of readiness ahead of the 2026 hurricane season. The letter details how the Trump administration has systematically hollowed out FEMA's workforce, with more than 5,000 employees departing since January 2025 and nearly half of the agency's top 38 leadership positions currently vacant. Thompson and Kennedy also raised urgent concerns about the Trump administration’s unprecedented politicization of the disaster declaration process. Forecasters project 11 to 16 named storms during the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, which begins on June 1st—just weeks from today. Thompson and Kennedy called on DHS and FEMA to immediately release withheld disaster relief funding, restore critical hurricane-related contracts, reverse workforce reductions, and fill all vacant leadership positions. "Americans in hurricane-prone communities deserve a FEMA that is fully staffed, operationally ready, and nonpartisan," the Ranking Members wrote. “By every measure, they do not have that today." Click here to read the full letter. ###