Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, AGENCY NEWS—In letter to Congress, FEMA employees voice opposition to agency’s hobbling, (Aug 27, 2025)

By Patricia K. Ruiz, J.D.

Employees whose names appear on the declaration report they were placed on leave the day after it went to Congress.

Current and former Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) employees across the U.S. issued a declaration and petition to Congress to warn of the cascading effects of decisions made by the Trump administration and its appointees, FEMA’s Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Administrator (SOPDA) David Richardson, Former SOPDA Cameron Hamilton, and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem. The declaration details six statements of opposition aimed at preventing the effective dissolution of FEMA.

Reduction in capability. According to the declaration, Noem has impounded agency funds, requiring a personal review and approval of all contracts, grants, and mission assignments over $100,000, reducing FEMA’s authorities and capabilities to swiftly deliver its mission. The consequences of this manual review were made apparent during the July 2025 floods in Kerrville, Texas, during which mission assignments were delayed up to 24 hours. The declaration argues that Noem’s review of contracts is superfluous, given that FEMA is already required by the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (PKEMRA) to develop “pre-scripted mission assignments” in conjunction with federal partners that also have legal responsibilities to ensure rapid federal disaster response. Further, despite a prohibition under PKEMRA on transfers of assets, “except for details or assignments that do not reduce the capability of the Agency to perform its missions,” FEMA employees have been detailed and reassigned to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), even though FEMA is already operating at reduced capacity.

Failure to appoint a qualified FEMA administrator. The declaration states that there have been two individuals placed in charge of FEMA who lack proper qualification and the authority to lead the agency. The declaration states, “Hurricane season has begun, yet FEMA continues to lack an appointed Administrator with the mandated qualifications to fulfill this role.” Under PKEMRA, the Administrator must have a demonstrated ability in and knowledge of emergency management and homeland security and no less than five years of executive leadership and management experience in the public or private sector.

Elimination of risk reduction programs. Mitigation reduces the costs of future disasters, saves lives, protects critical infrastructure, and reduces future response and recovery needs. As disasters become more frequent and more costly, removing mitigation initiatives is fiscally irresponsible and puts American lives and property at unnecessary risk, the declaration states. FEMA terminated its pre-disaster mitigation program without public notice, terminating current awards appropriated by Congress. The administration has also failed to authorize funds through the post-disaster hazard mitigation grant program for almost all presidentially declared major disasters since February 2025. The declaration argues that these actions undermine FEMA’s legal authority and responsibility.

Interference with preparedness programs. State, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) partners cannot succeed without federal support through sustained training, technical assistance, and coordinated planning efforts, the declaration states. Cuts to these programs prioritize the appearance of cost reduction and empowerment of SLTT partners but will result in an opposite outcome. The declaration argues that interference with community preparedness programs is weakening the ability of SLTT partners to respond to disasters.

Censorship of climate science. The declaration states that the administration’s decision to ignore and disregard the facts pertaining to climate science in disasters, including its directive to FEMA employees to remove climate change-related information from both public-facing and internal documents, shows a blatant disregard for the safety and security of the nation’s people. In particular, the Future Risk Index was removed from FEMA’s website, significantly decreasing the nation’s ability to properly prepare for and mitigate against risk.

Reduction of FEMA’s disaster workforce. The current capacities of FEMA have been significantly limited due to a loss of personnel through programs designed to incentivize its workforce to leave the federal service, ongoing hiring freezes, and the cancellation of critical support contracts. The declaration noted that one-third of FEMA’s full-time staff have departed the agency this year, leading to the loss of irreplaceable institutional knowledge and long-built relationships.

Requests to Congress. The signatories of the declaration petitioned Congress to: (1) establish FEMA as a cabinet-level independent agency in the executive branch; (2) defend the agency from further interference from the Department of Homeland Security, including illegal impoundments of appropriated funding; ensuring FEMA retains its full authority, responsibilities, functions, and capabilities to perform its missions; (3) protect FEMA employees from politically motivated firings and ensure continued protection under merit-based personnel systems; and (4) demand transparency from the Office of Management and Budget, the Department of Government Efficiency, and FEMA leadership regarding internal employment policies and future agency reductions.

Placed on leave. Now, the employees who used their names on the declaration, rather than remain anonymous, report they have been placed on paid leave.

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