An analysis of FEMA data reveals that President Donald Trump approves disaster aid at a lower rate for Democratic-led states, approving 80% of requests from Republican governors but only 60% from Democrats. Trump also takes an average of 1.5 months to approve declarations, longer than any president since 1989. While the White House denies any politicization, a presidential council has proposed sweeping FEMA reforms that would shift more financial burdens to states and cut the federal cost-share to 50%.
Partisan disaster aid disparities
- ▪President Donald Trump approved more than three-fourths of disaster requests from states that voted for him in 2024 but less than half from states that did not
- ▪President Donald Trump denied disaster aid requests for a February snowstorm from four Democratic states: Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island
- ▪President Donald Trump approved 80% of disaster requests from Republican governors but only about 60% from Democratic governors during his second term
Trump disaster declaration delays
- ▪President Donald Trump has taken an average of a month and a half to approve major disaster declarations since assuming office for his second term
- ▪Of President Donald Trump's second-term disaster approvals, 70% have taken at least a month, compared to about 25% under his first term and the Biden administration
FEMA leadership confirmation process
- ▪The Federal Emergency Management Agency has had four different temporary leaders since President Donald Trump took office in January 2025
- ▪Cameron Hamilton, a former Navy SEAL fired as acting director in May 2025, is awaiting Senate confirmation as the permanent director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency
Proposed FEMA reform criteria
- ▪A council appointed by President Donald Trump recommended revised criteria for disaster declarations, including a prerequisite of annual minimum expenditures by states, territories, and tribes
- ▪A council appointed by President Donald Trump recommended consolidating several different types of individual disaster aid into a single payment for uninhabitable homes
Federal cost-sharing reduction proposals
- ▪A council appointed by President Donald Trump recommended reducing the federal government's minimum share of disaster aid from 75% to 50% of the costs
- ▪The proposed reduction of the federal disaster aid cost-share to 50% would require congressional approval to take effect
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