Pallone Blasts FEMA for Ignoring Hurricane Season Readiness Request

June 1, 2026 Press Release After Missing Congressional Deadline, FEMA Faces Questions About Readiness Amid Staffing Cuts, Leadership Turmoil, and Diversion of Personnel to ICE WASHINGTON, DC – As hurricane season begins today, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, is demanding answers from Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) after the agency failed to meet a 14-day deadline to brief Congress on its disaster preparedness, staffing levels, and operational readiness. “Today is the first day of hurricane season, and FEMA still hasn't answered basic questions about whether it's ready. Over the last year, the Trump Administration has cut staff, cycled through FEMA leaders, and stripped personnel from disaster response operations to bolster ICE. While people detained at Delaney Hall are on hunger strike and reporting abusive conditions, the Trump Administration continues to pour resources into immigration enforcement while weakening the agency responsible for helping Americans survive and recover from disasters. This is unacceptable and needlessly puts lives in danger,” said Pallone. Pallone requested a briefing on May 14 after months of turmoil at FEMA, including repeated leadership shakeups, workforce reductions, and proposals to scale back the federal government's role in disaster response. The agency continues to operate without a Senate-confirmed administrator while key leadership positions remain vacant. The NJ Congressman’s request also followed a series of decisions that diverted FEMA personnel and resources away from disaster preparedness. Last year , the Trump Administration reassigned more than 100 FEMA employees to assist immigration enforcement operations during hurricane season, despite warnings that the move would weaken the agency's ability to respond to emergencies. Pallone criticized the decision at the time, warning that FEMA's disaster response mission was being sacrificed to support the Administration's mass deportation agenda. His concerns have taken on new urgency as detainees at the Delaney Hall immigration detention facility in Newark, NJ have reported inadequate medical care, poor living conditions, and retaliation for protesting their treatment, including through a hunger strike. Pallone has conducted oversight visits, condemned reports of detainees being pepper-sprayed and beaten after speaking out and repeatedly called for the facility's closure. ###