Pointing to hurricanes in Florida and fires in Hawaii, last week, U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., doubled down on his proposal “that would replenish the Disaster Relief Fund, the main fund FEMA uses to respond and recover from disasters.”
Moskowitz, who led the Florida Department of Emergency Management (FDEM) under Gov. Ron DeSantis, teamed up with U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., on the “Disaster Relief Fund Replenishment Act.” The bill ensures the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) “has sufficient resources to continue ongoing disaster response and is prepared for unforeseen major disasters such as hurricanes, wildfires, and other events.”
The congressman urged Congress to pass the proposal.
“As the former director of emergency management for Florida, I’ve seen a lot of devastation. But I’ve got to be honest: the damage from the Lāhainā fires was overwhelming. With the ongoing on disasters happening more and more frequently the DRF is now almost completely diminished. Disaster response has been and should always be bipartisan,” Moskowitz said.
The congressman called for “immediate action from the House and the Senate to address this crisis” and said the stakes are high.
“Failure to act will leave FEMA crippled during the height of hurricane season,” he said.
In recent days, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla. and U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla., included the bill in their “Federal Disaster Responsibility Act” relief package.
