FEMA Facing Steep Cuts in Staff, Reorganization, as Hurricane Season Nears

With the 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season just weeks away, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is reeling from significant staff departures and facing large scale internal changes driven by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The disruptions raise significant concerns about the country’s ability to respond and recover from what could be an above-average hurricane season.  

Roughly 1,000 workers recently accepted a voluntary buyout from DOGE, CNN reported. This constitutes 20% of the agency’s permanent, full-time staff. Those departing include senior professionals and people responsible for creating operations, disaster response, and recovery plans. More than 800 already accepted a similar DOGE offer earlier this year. As a result, the agency, which was experiencing a chronic staffing shortage as recently as last year, is significantly undermanned and without the operational expertise and experience it has relied on in the past.  

In addition to these departures, FEMA’s Cadre of On-Call Response Employees (CORE) and members of the FEMA Reserve, are facing significant issues renewing their on-call positions. These employees, who constitute the vast majority of the agency’s workforce, work under FEMA on a part-time basis when disaster response and recovery needs require it. Part-time employees are reviewed and recertified every 2-4 years. However, under a directive from DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, these renewals now require the direct approval of the Secretary’s office. Those with expired certifications are currently only receiving 30-day extensions, creating confusion over future plans and expectations. It is expected that this requirement will further drive departures among part-time employees, who are otherwise ineligible for the voluntary dismissals offered by DOGE.  

In an apparent attempt to maintain readiness and shift agency operations away from disaster preparedness and recovery work, as directed by President Trump, a draft memo obtained by Reuters reveals that the Acting FEMA Administrator Cam Hamilton plans to direct nearly all of the agency’s headquarters staff to deploy directly to disasters in the coming months. While FEMA Headquarters staff have historically taken deployments to disaster impacted areas with relative frequency, the memo creates mandatory deployment requirements of up to three months a year, directly interfering with FEMA Headquarters operations. The memo states that a limited number of employees would be assigned non-deployment roles to “maintain minimum viable agency operations.”  

With the 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season starting June 1, these changes could not come at a worse time. While the agency and disaster response/recovery system is in need of significant reform, removing FEMA’s ability to prepare, respond, and assist communities in recovering from disasters will risk lives and harm communities with low incomes across the country. Take Action Here to tell your members of Congress to weigh in with the Administration and reverse these harmful cuts and changes at FEMA.