After Texas floods, questions about FEMA's future loom large [View all]

Source: NBC News

After Texas floods, questions about FEMA's future loom large

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has been exerting more direct control over the agency, which President Donald Trump has talked about "getting rid of."

July 9, 2025, 4:27 PM EDT
By Laura Strickler, Monica Alba, Jonathan Allen and Julia Ainsley

The devastating Texas flooding that has killed nearly 120 people is the first high-profile disaster the Federal Emergency Management Agency has faced during the current Trump administration. But while the loss of life has been catastrophic, former and current FEMA officials told NBC News that the relatively small geographic area affected means it’s not a true test of what the agency, whose full-time staff has been shrunk by a third, is capable of doing in the wake of a disaster.

The real tryout could come later this summer, they say, when there is always the threat that a hurricane could hit several states.

As the agency’s future is debated — President Donald Trump has talked about possibly “getting rid of” it — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who oversees it, has tightened her grip.

Noem now requires that all agency spending over $100,000 be personally approved by her, according to current and former FEMA officials. To prevent delays on the ground, on Monday FEMA officials created a task force to speed up the process of getting Noem’s approval, according to two people familiar with that unit.

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Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/texas-floods-questions-femas-future-loom-large-rcna217711