After 2 Hurricanes, FEMA Will Urgently Need Funding From Congress, Mayorkas Says

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas addresses the 36th annual candlelight vigil to honor law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty on the National Mall in Washington on May 13, 2024. Andrew thomas/AFP via Getty Images

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas confirmed on Oct. 10 that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will need more funding as soon as possible following hurricanes Milton and Helene.

Helene dealt widespread damage across the southern United States, doing its worst in western North Carolina, after making landfall late last month. Milton slammed into Florida’s Gulf Coast as a category 3 hurricane late on Oct. 9, and officials have not fully surveyed the extent of the damage.

In a news conference at the White House, Mayorkas said he believed FEMA has enough funding to deal with the aftermath of both storms, when answering questions from reporters.

“We have the resources to respond to the immediate needs of individuals impacted by Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton,” Mayorkas said.

“That being said, we will need additional funds, and we implore Congress when it returns to, in fact, fund FEMA as is needed.”

Mayorkas then called on Congress to swiftly pass a measure to fund FEMA’s disaster response “to deliver assistance to people,” adding, “We will need funding very rapidly.” Congress is currently on recess and is scheduled to return on Nov. 12.

The homeland security head had previously suggested FEMA didn’t have the long-term funding needed, but said similarly that the agency would be able to attend to the immediate needs of Helene’s victims. His comments sparked criticism from some Republican lawmakers, who claimed on social media that FEMA was spending hundreds of millions of dollars on illegal immigrants, citing an April announcement from the agency.

Some North Carolina residents have reportedly claimed that FEMA has blocked off roads and not provided enough relief in Helene’s aftermath. The Epoch Times has been unable to independently verify those claims.

FEMA Director Deanne Criswell told ABC News on Oct. 6 that such accusations are “not helpful” and are “demoralizing to all of the first responders that have been out there in their communities helping people.”

FEMA also set up several pages on its website, including a “rumor response” section that addresses concerns people may have regarding its handling of Helene.

“FEMA’s disaster response efforts and individual assistance is funded through the Disaster Relief Fund, which is a dedicated fund for disaster efforts. Disaster Relief Fund money has not been diverted to other, non-disaster related efforts,” the agency said in one of the rumor response statements.

Meanwhile, Criswell said FEMA has “enough funds to absolutely get through the response” for both Helene and Milton, but might run out of cash without additional funding.

“We don’t have enough money to continue throughout the rest of the year,” she told Fox News, adding that her agency has been “able to anticipate last year, this year, and even going into next year, that we are not going to have enough to pay all of the recovery bills.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also responded on Oct. 9 to a rumor that FEMA would prevent certain people from returning to their homes after evacuating ahead of Milton. He rebutted those claims, noting that his administration is leading the response in Florida.

“We live in an era where if you put out crap online, you can get a lot of people to share it and you can monetize that. That’s just the way it is,” DeSantis said at a news conference, adding that “in the state of Florida none of that stuff would ever fly.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.