When a hurricane, flood, or wildfire hits, homes, hospitals, roads, and the local tax base can be destroyed at the same time. No town or state can rebuild from that alone. Federal disaster aid exists to spread the cost of catastrophic loss across the whole country instead of leaving devastated communities to carry it by themselves. Now the Trump administration is moving to shift disaster responsibilities and costs onto states. Shifting the burden does not erase the cost. It leaves survivors with less help, slower recovery, or higher state and local taxes. Stronger state preparedness and faster approvals are worthwhile goals, but they are no substitute for a federal partner when a disaster overwhelms local resources. Families who have lost everything should not have to wonder whether help is coming. Write protections into law that keep the Federal Emergency Management Agency responsible for helping Americans when disasters overwhelm state and local resources.
