FEMA – Lets Nuke It as Well
President Trump recently proposed that FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) be turned over to the states.
This piece represents not only agreement, but arguments to do it.
To start with, FEMA was originally created by President Carter with an EO in 1979. It became a part of US law in 1988. That Stafford Act provided direction for emergency management and established the current statutory framework for disaster response and recovery through presidential disaster declarations.
Going back further, LBJ’s War on Poverty began the unprecedented growth of the federal government in areas where it had not previously been involved, much less providing funding.
There’s a plethora of examples. Let’s just suffice to say that government spending began its wild “takeoff” in the 60’s and 70’s.
FEMA was part of the assumption and funding of programs and activities which had previously been left to the states and civil jurisdictions therein – but even more so to private sector charities.
Natural disasters have not been, and are not now, new to us. Spring season has always brought the threat of floods along the rivers of the country as spring showers and snow melt many times overflow the riverbanks. Downpours and tornadoes normally show up during the summer months. Late summer and fall have always brought on the threats of wildfires and hurricanes.
So how did we deal with natural disaster losses by people before FEMA?
We handled them in several ways.
One, unscathed neighbors helped – they pitched in. Other local folks supported charities in their communities that had disaster relief as part of their reason to exist. Dependent on the scope and devastation, other people from around the state and country supported the relief efforts through national charities which had a presence in the local communities through affiliates. The American Red Cross tops that list, perhaps followed by the Salvation Army – involving thousands of volunteers.
Two, having learned from experience, major efforts to mitigate loss and destruction were implemented. Levees and flood walls were built to hold a river’s waters out of many populated areas.
Local and state managements adopted ordinances and building codes that could better withstand a windstorm that wasn’t a direct hit by a tornado or hurricane.
Three. Insurance in most local communities started as coops. Later additional and larger mutual and for-profit companies entered the field.
The point is clear. Without the federal government spreading its scope of activity to natural disasters, somehow affected people and communities recovered, rebuilt and thrived.
There was no need prior to now, and one doesn’t exist now, that requires we have a huge government program called FEMA to hand out a few hundred dollars to victims of natural disasters.
We have such agencies as the Small Business Administration that can make sensible loans to local businesses to help get them back on their feet and get local employees back to work and paycheck. We also have numerous banks operating in our communities with wherewithal to make favorable loans to businesses and families.
“Handouts” were never things people used to think about as something owed them. It wasn’t so long ago that most people considered them demeaning. Pride and sense of self value rejected the idea of getting something for nothing. Welfare was not welcome.
Having said that, there may be times when the federal government would validly step in on a natural disaster. An example comes to mind that could negatively affect one of the key roles of the feds under the Constitution: commerce.
For example, a major port handling exports and imports that suffers major damage from fire or natural disaster should be of interest to the federal government and is reason for its financial involvement.
Another example is the management of national forests in preventing wildfires. States should have the same involvement with their properties and those in and around their cities and neighborhoods. The aftermath of the recent devastation and destruction in Los Angeles and southern CA is heart rendering but is not the responsibility of the federal government.
Also, the feds should move quickly on man-made disasters like that experienced by Palestine, OH – especially toxic spills into interstate rivers/waters.
Big Brother – the federal government – needs to get out of all the arenas where it has no constitutional standing or mission.
The other side of the coin, so to speak, is not only the expense of the handouts, but the expense of making them.
It’s important to us as donors to charities to know the percentage of monies that actually go to solve or alleviate the targeted problem(s) v. the amount spent on fundraising and overhead.
The Government Accounting Office (GAO) has also found that FEMA lacks an integrated plan with time frames and milestones to hold senior officials accountable for achieving its goals and does not track administrative costs by major disaster program.
Why don’t we have the same cost and impact concerns with our government as we have for charities?
There are hundreds of federal agencies that carry big percentages of overhead and lack results-oriented operations and measurements.
So, while we can and should dissolve FEMA, let’s consider it only a good start – and quit mistakenly thinking the federal government is the answer to every issue or problem.
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Have a great and prosperous week.
Hug somebody.
References:
https://www.fema.gov/about/history
https://www.fedweek.com/federal-managers-daily-report/gao-finds-high-overhead-costs-fema/
SPIDER Bytes
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