Acting FEMA Chief Is Ousted After Less Than 4 Months

Less than a month before the start of hurricane season, the acting administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency has been fired.

A spokesperson with FEMA offered no reason for the dismissal, but confirmed to Insurance Journal reports that Cameron Hamilton was removed from the post he held since he was appointed by President Donald Trump in late January.

David Richardson is now FEMA administrator, the spokesperson said.

Richardson since January has been the assistant secretary for the Department of Homeland Security’s Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office. He previously served as a U.S. Marine Corps ground combat officer, according to DHS.

The news of Hamilton’s firing was first reported by Politico, who said Deputy Homeland Security Secretary Troy Edgar and Trump advisor Corey Lewandowski fired Hamilton early May 8 at Homeland Security headquarters.

Hamilton’s dismissal came a day after he testified at a subcommittee hearing of the House Appropriations Committee. In prepared remarks, Hamilton told the subcommittee that FEMA “strayed far from its core mission and evolved into an overextended federal bureaucracy.”

“Instead of being a last resort, FEMA is now frequently used by states as a first responder and a financial backstop for routine issues that should be handled locally,” Hamilton continued. “This misalignment has fostered a culture of dependency, waste, and inefficiency, while delaying critical aid to Americans in genuine need.”

Hamilton acknowledged Trump’s creation of a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Review Council and said he’d “respect the independence of the council’s review” and “welcome its recommendations.”

Chubb CEO Evan Greenberg is one of about a dozen members of the review council.

However, according to reports, Hamilton told the subcommittee members he did not think it was in the best interest of the country to eliminate FEMA.

Trump has been a critic of FEMA. While touring affected areas of California wildfires and North Carolina floods earlier this year, Trump talked of “getting rid of” FEMA, which cannot be done without the approval of Congress. He called the agency a “very big disappointment.”

Related: Trump Proposes ‘Getting Rid of FEMA’ While Touring Disaster Areas

FEMA recently ended the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program, erasing billions of dollars set to be distributed to communities for proactive protection measures. During testimony May 1 before a Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hearing, Robert Gordon, senior vice president of policy, research, and international at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) said the industry trade association was in support of federal resilience and mitigation funding like BRIC.

Related: Loss of FEMA Program Spells Disaster for Hundreds of Communities and Projects

FEMA is the administrator of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). APCIA also urged a long-term reauthorization of NFIP.

Photo: A sign for the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Washington. (Al Drago/The New York Times via AP, Pool)

Topics FEMA