The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security held a hearing, “Update on Recovery Efforts for 2017 and 2018 Disasters,” on March 12. Acting FEMA Administrator Peter Gaynor, the sole witness, answered questions on a variety of topics, including disaster housing assistance and FEMA’s response in Puerto Rico.
Subcommittee Chair Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA) asked how FEMA plans to provide housing assistance for survivors of the 2017 Tubbs wildfire who have been unable to find permanent housing and are approaching FEMA’s 18-month limit on housing assistance. Mr. Gaynor acknowledged that “post-disaster housing is a big problem,” asserting that FEMA needs partnerships with state and local entities to help deliver housing. He later held up the Sheltering and Temporary Essential Power (STEP) program as a promising housing solution being used “with great success” in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. STEP helps homeowners make some basic repairs to their homes with costs shared between states and FEMA.
Several members of the committee asked about FEMA’s disaster response in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In response to a question from Ranking Member Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN) about the agency’s response in the territories compared to other efforts, Mr. Gaynor asserted that FEMA is “all in” but faced significant challenges because of geography, the scale of the disaster, and issues pre-dating Hurricanes Irma and Maria. He stated that he has no knowledge of President Trump attempting to block funding to Puerto Rico and does not believe the island needs additional funding for debris removal. Representative Steven Palazzo (R-MS) noted that officials in Puerto Rico have been asking for additional support for debris removal, but Mr. Gaynor said recovery happens best when local governments have financial responsibilities keeping them accountable.
Learn more about the hearing and watch archived footage at: https://bit.ly/2UxEtj7