CONGRESSMAN FIELDS RESPONDS TO URGENT CONCERNS REGARDING FEMA PREPAREDNESS AND EROSION OF POST-KATRINA REFORMS

Baton Rouge, LA – Congressman Cleo Fields released the following statement today in response to reports that the Trump Administration is undoing critical FEMA reforms put in place after Hurricane Katrina:

“To hear of the erosion of FEMA's post-Katrina reforms that Louisianans fought so hard for is deeply troubling. After Hurricane Katrina, Louisiana learned the hard way what happens when disaster response systems fail. Those changes were put in place to make sure FEMA had qualified leadership, adequate staffing, and the independence it needed to protect the American People when disaster strikes. They were hard-won reforms, paid for in lives lost and communities broken.

With reports that those safeguards are being undone, I fear we are drifting backward. That is cause for great concern. I wrote to President Trump, Secretary Noem, and the former acting director, Mr. Hamilton months ago to make it clear that FEMA must remain strong, capable, and ready to respond. People's safety depends on it, and we cannot afford to repeat the mistakes of the past. I urge this Administration to do the right thing, and that's to restore those reforms, protect FEMA's mission, and put the safety of the American people first.”

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