Advancing FEMA Reform
Last week, in a House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing on the FEMA Act of 2025, I questioned former FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate about improving disaster recovery for communities like the Northern Marianas. The legislation includes commonsense reforms that would streamline FEMA’s programs, reduce bureaucratic delays, expand mitigation investments, and replace the slow reimbursement process for many projects with upfront grants so communities can rebuild more quickly. For the CNMI, where disasters can overwhelm limited local resources and recovery is often slowed by our geographic isolation, these reforms would help deliver assistance faster, strengthen resilience before the next storm, and ensure federal disaster programs better reflect the unique needs of America’s island territories. We remain committed to advancing these reforms so our communities have the tools they need to recover stronger after future disasters.