Federal emergency assistance confusion draws concerns from Hawai‘i delegation

Hawai‘i lawmakers on Capitol Hill in Washington are concerned about significant delays and the many obstacles several state agencies and nonprofit organizations reported in regard to receiving federal funds that support much needed assistance in the islands.

U.S. Sens. Brian Schatz and Mazie Hirono joined U.S. Reps. Ed Case and Jill Tokuda, all Hawai‘i Democrats, in a letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency this week expressed concern regarding “execution challenges with several of the agency’s grants and negative effects on the people and institutions of Hawai‘i.”

Lawmakers state in their letter that they heard various state and local agencies and nonprofits experienced “significant delays and obstacles” with grants that support much needed assistance in the Aloha State.

Plus, these “related funds have not been properly awarded and obligated.”

The letter was sent to U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Federal Emergency Management Agency Senior Official Performing Duties of Administrator Karen Evans. Homeland Security oversees the federal emergency agency.

The delegation — after hearing several examples of confusion about the way the various grants were administered — stated “these examples suggest that FEMA’s current grant-making operations are experiencing significant difficulties marked by challenges in timelines, communication and procedural consistency.”

Lawmakers are now calling for answers to several questions:

1. Why did fiscal year 2024 Emergency Food and Shelter Program awardees not receive their funding in a timely manner?
2. What steps are Department of Homeland Security and FEMA taking in coordination with the Emergency Food and Shelter Program to ensure fiscal year 2024 awardees receive their funding expeditiously and the fiscal year 2025 funding process experiences no further delays?
3. Why did Homeland Security and federal emergency agency terminate the Hawai‘i Office of Homeland Security’s fiscal year 2024 Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention grant that supported the implementation of the nation’s first targeted violence prevention plan?
4. How do Homeland Security and FEMA plan to support targeted violence prevention in Hawai‘i and other localities throughout the country?
5. Why did Department of Homeland Security, through Federal Emergency Management Agency, only allow a 1-year period of performance for fiscal year 2025 Homeland Security Grant and Emergency Management Performance Grant awards?
6. Given that the 1-year performance period decision for the Homeland Security Grant and Emergency Management Performance Grant programs might reduce the capacity of emergency managers nationwide and potentially heighten community vulnerability, how do Homeland Security and FEMA plan to address these potential impacts?

“We look forward to engaging constructively with [Department of Homeland Security] and [Federal Emergency Management Agency] to clarify these matters and implement the solutions needed to correct them, all toward our mutual goal of making Americans and their communities safer across the nation,” states the Hawai‘i delegation’s letter.

The lawmakers gave the two agencies until Dec. 31 to reply with answers to their questions.

Click here to read the entire letter.