California’s Disaster Funding May Be in Jeopardy Under Trump’s FEMA — ProPublica

In January, Katie Clark’s one-room rent for more than 15 years, and almost everything inside, was burned by Los Angeles County, one of the most devastating fires in California’s history. For her trouble, she received a one -time payment of $ 770 from the Federal Emergency Agency, which used to replace clothes, food and dog boxes. Although it was just a part of what she needed, the money was at least available while she was waiting for another funding.

As the organizer of the Altadena tenant, which helps the tenants in her Fema apps, Clark knows how common her experience for survivors. She believes that federal and local agencies strongly underestimated The need and the cost of housing for 150,000 fires, which are still fighting for recovery. The FEMA press secretary denied the allegation, saying that “the agency’s permanent assessments show that the current rental assistance program is effective in compliance with the requirements of the Housing Salvers entitled to the help of FEMA.”

The reaction of the disaster 30 people and destroyed more than 16000 structures“It could have been so much worse.”

“We would see much more people left on their own devices. And what it will mean is the homelessness. It will mean that people just threw,” Clark said.

Even before President Donald Trump and Governor Govin News -Speckers refused Trump’s decision to send the troops of the National Guard to stop the protests before Newsom compared Trump to the dictator and Trump supported the idea of ​​arresting the governor, the question of how much California could continue to count on Fema.

This is a critical question in a state – with his earthquakes, fires, floods, drought and strong heat – often suffering Some of the most expensive disasters In the country.

Since Trump’s inauguration, his administration has sailed on extensive proposals that would shorten FEMA dollars and complicate disasters. It left both the blue and the red states that fight the scripts in which they should pay for what Fema will not be. The States have long been hoping for FEMA to cover at least 75% of the high cost reactions to natural disasters and recovery.

Only in the past few months Fema has denied federal aid for devastating Floods in Western Virginia and devastating Wind storm in Washington. Agency approved such funding of the deadly tornado in Arkansas after Governor Sarah Hakabi Sanders appealed the initial refusal and refusal and personally asked President for help.

Last month PROPUBLICA reported it FEMA missed May May To open the process of submitting applications for numerous grants, including funding, which claims that they pay for major emergency operations. The delay that the agency did not explain, it seems, has little precedent.

California Trump raised doubts about whether he would approve $ 40 billion requests To help pay for the resumption of fires related to fires, including $ 16.8 billion from FEMA to restore property, infrastructure and debris. This is above almost 140 million dollars, which the agency has already provided separate survivors.

Last month, the President told reporters that the states needed to wean FEMA and that the federal government would start to distribute less federal assistance after the end of the hurricane in November.

Questions now: How much will be approved? Will it be enough? And, if not, what then?

The FEMA press -secretary did not answer directly to the Capital & Main questions about the expected cuts in financing and potential exposure to state and local communities, but said the agency “claims that the catastrophes are best managed when they have received federal support, the state is governed and locally fulfilled.”

The uncertainty makes it “very heavy” to plan, said Haiser Gonzalez, the chief fiscal and political analyst for emergency services at the California legislative analyst. “The small facets of the beans are emphasized now, trying to find out,” What will we need to work with? “

According to her, the recent “dust products” between Newsom and Trump only emphasized unpredictability. For his part, Newsom said he prefers an “open hand” cooperation over the “closed fist” of the fight when it comes to the reaction to the catastrophe.

“Emergency preparedness and emergency planning, recovery and updating – a full stop – it must be non -political,” he said on Monday, which said six months after the fires.

The rise in the cost of the disaster

At least in the 1980s California survived the rapidly growing number of dollars, with 18 is going on Only between 2015 and 2024.

As the frequency and severity of the catastrophe in California increases, the federal assistance is also dependent. After the January and Palisada fires – fires – The second and third most destructive fire In the history of California, respectively, FEMA has already provided $ 139 million, from the cost of repairing the home to medical expenses, and the agency “allocated billions of debris,” FEMA press. More than 5,000 objects were already cleared of ash and fire.

Emily Montanez, director of the ambulance at ambulance, stated that the efforts to restore fires are likely to not be completed over the years and are greatly dependent on Fema.

“After the Norridge earthquake in 1994, FEMA had field offices for 28 years,” said Montanes. “We see that it is no different. It was a much greater destruction, much more impact. So, it may be years of definitely decades.”

While Montanes admitted that potential “gaps” in the efforts to respond to natural disasters leave some survivors without sufficient resources, she said that recent operations agreed between FEMA and local agencies were mostly effective and successful.

Federal Aid FEMA complements your own reaction to California’s disaster and resources for mitigating the consequences like those Management Governor’s Emergency Situationswhich was set aside at $ 4.4 billion in May Review State budget 2025-26. If the office financing does not cover all the cost of the disaster, California can also pull out a number of reserves, including the budget stabilization account and a special fund for economic uncertainty.

On Monday, Newsom said Capital & Main that the state increased its discrete reserves as a direct consequence of Trump’s constant threats for FEMA, although even an increase in investments would not supplement the potential losses of federal financing.

California “can’t fall asleep to eliminate FEMA,” said Newsom. “There is no state in America (which can), even the endowed state – $ 4.1 trillion a year – the largest in the country, the fourth largest in the world.”

And California Budget deficit for $ 12 billion According to Laurie Shoman, the senior advisor on the climate resistance to former President Joe Biden.

This will be made even more complicated if the still unnamed sentences are laid out Inner memo fema According to Shoman. One of the reforms sailed in the memo, the proportion of the restoration, covered by the federal government on the current base line 75%. According to the current rules, the president can increase the cost of FEMA to 100%because Biden did For Los -Angeles, the fire will deteriorate less than two weeks before he left the post.

Another four -fold proposal, the amount of damage to be suffered in the disaster before Fema rewards any grants for state aid for infrastructure repair and garbage removal. This can go on the threshold of damage in California approximately $ 75 million to nearly $ 300 million per catastrophe.

If only this second reform was carried out between 2008 and 2024, California would receive 26% less financing of state aid from FEMA, a loss of almost $ 2 billion, reports A may Analysis At the City Institute, Washington, Colombia, Analytical Center.

Such a reduction in financing during future events will lead to an “apocalyptic scenario” when California communities will fight for shelters and pay for the ambulance to save the victims of the catastrophe, according to Sarah Labovich, the senior fellow in the field of sustainability, climate and geopolitics.

But significant damage has already been caused, Shoman said.

In April, the Trump administration canceled the program of sustainable infrastructure and communities, the Fema initiative dedicated to the preparation for catastrophes. More than $ 880 million has been canceled, including a 35 million grant in California, the Napic district, largely devoted to fire prevention work. The administration refused to respond to the Capital & Main request for a comment, referring to Fema questions. The agency’s press -secretary said his approach to the disaster reflects the reaction to the disaster: Fema will play a role.

“All kinds of readiness begin with families, persons, local and state officials before any extraordinary situations and catastrophes,” the agency said.

Shoman said the abolished federal funding risks to undermine communities to protect against future disasters, and canceled the work done within the first term of Trump.

“They just reduce these projects, even if they have proven the cost analysis,” Shoman said. “The BRIC program was launched under the Trump administration … so it seems that the administration will cut off its own leg.”

Clark said she was already fighting for help. She said her insurance supplier has still deprived more than $ 25,000 because of the differences on whether her transitional housing could be temporary and her applications for additional FEMA assistance were denied by her technical intimidation. Some of the wealthy survivors had “insulation and stability that give you economic resources” and others had to depend on non -profit organizations or that government assistance, which is now risked to afford transitional housing.

“If you do not have such economic resources, your only option is to contact either philanthropy or the state,” Clark said. “If none of them is available, then great luck.”