Get ready. As we head into hurricane season, fire season and flood season, which are all worsening because the planet is warming, our federal government is not equipped to help you prepare for, escape from, or respond to the disaster. In fact, there is apparently no plan in writing for how the federal government will respond to disasters this year.
According to an internal review, the Federal Emergency Management Agency isn’t ready to help Americans this year, and if President Trump has any say in the matter, it will never be ready. Trump plans to dismantle the agency entirely by December. And even if he’s not serious about dismantling FEMA and instead opts for reforming it, the cuts to the agency have already been disastrous.
This is a serious security situation, which potentially puts all of us in harm’s way. Since 1979, FEMA has been a life-saving service, helping Americans get through the worst of a disaster. Dismembering it, as Trump wants to do, is extremely irresponsible and makes hundreds of millions of Americans more vulnerable as disasters worsen, take more human lives, and do more damage to infrastructure.
The toll keeps mounting. The last couple of years have broken historical records for the total number of billion-dollar disasters from extreme weather, the growth of which has been exponential due to global warming.
We are now witnessing, cumulatively, hundreds of billions of dollars of devastation each year and hundreds of deaths due to disasters that depend on federal assistance. Meanwhile, Americans all across this country are being left in the lurch.
The time to act is now.
First, we need to do everything in our power to protect the federal emergency management resources and expertise before they get dismantled or downsized further. Already, there are people being assigned by the Trump administration to FEMA leadership roles that have no emergency management experience. Meanwhile, cuts to key programs like flood control in communities across America continue apace. That has to stop.
Bipartisan efforts in Congress to improve FEMA — by investing in resilience and risk mitigation, providing more efficient financial resources to local governments, and supporting permanent repairs to the infrastructure versus temporary fixes — are all welcome. This is a helpful reform.
Second, we need to double down on what’s worked in the past. The Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program, for example, was canceled recently even though it was both immensely popular with both parties and initiated during the first Trump administration. It should be reinstated and fully funded.
Local governments need this kind of support when building resilient infrastructure as they brace for worsening winds and water events, fires, and floods. Most urban infrastructure in America wasn’t built to age well and ultimately withstand what we’re witnessing now. Retrofits are needed across the country to ensure lives are protected and damage is avoided. Resilience hubs, which many cities and counties are rolling out locally, are providing life-saving resources for Americans, but need federal support to ensure all communities are covered and no American is left behind.
Now more than ever, it is essential for bipartisan support to expand Smart Cities technology for communities who are experiencing the impacts of climate change. We have a responsibility to the American people to improve the quality of life of every citizen by providing resources and technology to equip our cities and towns with the necessary tools to become climate-resilient communities.
Legislation such as the Smart Cities and Communities Act will deliver equitable opportunities and improve the infrastructure of our cities to combat the devastating impacts of natural disasters due to the climate crisis.
There is an opportunity to build a national bipartisan initiative focusing on making America more resilient to increasingly devastating disasters and shocks. Such a national effort couldn’t be more patriotic or timely. And it will save lives and save money. There is no question that weather events are getting more deadly and disastrous. It’s past time we took them seriously and invested in an America capable of preparing for it.
Yvette D. Clarke represents the 9th Congressional District of New York and serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Michael Shank is adjunct faculty at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs and a visiting scholar at George Mason University’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution.
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