A.G. Gancarski
Storm season is upon us, and Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to know the White House plan regarding the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
“We have not necessarily gotten anything that would give us any directive on that,” DeSantis said Monday, adding that it “may be something that I talk to the President about tomorrow.”
That’s a reference to Donald Trump’s planned visit to the “Alligator Alcatraz” internment facility for undocumented immigrants. DeSantis in the past has argued strenuously that Florida can handle storm response if the federal government foots the bill.
But DeSantis added during his comments in Wildwood that it’s unclear what changes are imminent for the program.
“I do think that if there’s a storm that happens, I know FEMA is kind of in transition. What’s that going to mean?” DeSantis said.
“There are existing programs for individual assistance and reimbursement of local governments. And if that’s going to be devolved to the states, are you going to give us block grants where we’ll be able to manage that ourselves? Or are you going to say, ‘You guys just figure it out’?”
Questions loom about what the Trump administration thinks is a meaningful storm, with the Governor in the dark even as the tropics have been active for weeks.
“If we do have a major event, what’s the threshold going to be where they will approve us for financial assistance?” DeSantis asked.
”If it’s like a Category 2, does it meet the new threshold? I think they’ve raised the threshold. So I think that’s a question. I also think a question is, OK, are you devolving stuff to the state? If so, devolve it. I mean, I’m happy to take block grant money if we have a hurricane, and then we’ll administer that far more effectively than the federal government.”
DeSantis has said previously that he’s open to whatever approach to emergency management the feds decide to take.
“Some have said, ‘Well, what if they don’t block grant any money? What if they just get out of disaster management and just say the states must fend for themselves?’ Well, listen, if that happens, we’ve got a big surplus. We would have to make adjustments to how we approach things. But I can do that. Just let me know what’s in the best interest of the United States,” he said in April.
In an ironic twist, he also noted that he doesn’t expect the Trump administration to do as much for Florida as Joe Biden’s White House did, saying that the Democratic White House “bent over backwards” to fund debris cleanup last year.
“I don’t know if we’re going to get reimbursement going forward. Certainly not at that level from what we’re seeing,” DeSantis said in May.
One comment
Frankie M.
June 30, 2025 at 1:48 pm
The blind leading the blind. At least he can count on FEMA to reimburse his for that concentration camp he’s building.
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