Peters & Kim Press Trump Administration on Partisan Disparities in FEMA Disaster Relief 

WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Andy Kim (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Disaster Management, District of Columbia, and Census, led 15 of their Senate Democratic colleagues in sending a letter to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russ Vought demanding immediate transparency and accountability following reports that the Trump Administration has disproportionately rejected disaster aid for Democratic-run states and failed to deliver timely aid to disaster survivors.  

“Federal regulations require FEMA to provide recommendations based on specific, verifiable criteria. To date, President Trump’s Administration has provided no further information regarding what this new approval process entails or what metrics or other considerations it relies on, causing uncertainty that leaves disaster survivors in the dark. It is critical that Congress understand why disaster assistance requests have been denied and ensure the process is free from political influence,” wrote the Senators.  

In the letter, the Senators cite recent reporting that found that President Trump’s second Administration has rejected Public Assistance disaster aid for Democratic-run states at the highest rate in the 47-year history of FEMA. The same report found that Republican-led states have waited 39 days on average for a decision compared to the 80-day average for Democratic-led states. The Senators shared that “these delays have left disaster survivors in the dark waiting to learn whether the federal government will assist in their recovery.”   

Joining Peters and Kim in sending the letter were U.S. Senators Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Peter Welch (D-VT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Bernie Sanders (D-VT), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and Tina Smith (D-MN).  

Read the full letter here. 

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