During a House Transportation Committee hearing on Wednesday, Senior Official Performing the Duties of FEMA Administrator David Richardson spoke about FEMA.
00:00The chair now welcomes our witness, Mr. Richardson, and thank you, sir, for being here.
00:05Briefly, I'd like to take a moment to explain our lighting system for our witness and for everybody else in the room, in case you're wondering.
00:12There are three lights in front of you.
00:14Green means go, yellow means you're running out of time, and red means to conclude your remarks.
00:20I would also encourage you just to make yourself familiar with where the microphone switch is and have the mic up to your mouth so we can hear you.
00:27The chair asks unanimous consent that the witness's full statement be included in the record without objection.
00:34So order the chair also asks unanimous consent that the record of today's hearing remain open until such time as our witness has provided answers to any questions that may be submitted to him in writing without objection.
00:46So order the chair also asks unanimous consent that the record remain open for 15 days for additional comments and information submitted by members or the witness to be included in the record of today's hearing without objection.
01:00So ordered, as your written testimony has been made part of the record, sir, the subcommittee asks that you limit your oral remarks to five minutes.
01:08With that, Mr. Richardson, you are recognized for five minutes for your testimony.
01:14Chairman Perry, Ranking Member Stanton, Mr. Larson, and members of the subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today.
01:23I am the senior official performing the duties of the administrator of FEMA.
01:29Before I go on, I'd be remiss if I didn't recognize the tragic loss of life in New Mexico and Texas after the recent flooding.
01:39I was on the ground in Kerr County and saw the devastation firsthand.
01:45I'm a father and my heart sank when I heard so many children perish in Texas.
01:50My heart goes out to all of those who have lost loved ones.
01:56That said, I'm honored to be asked by Secretary Noem to assume my current position at FEMA as we work to implement President Trump's vision of ensuring the American people get immediate, effective, and impartial disaster response and recovery.
02:11The President and the Secretary have called on FEMA to return to its statutory mission, and I'm taking steps to do exactly that.
02:21Consistent with their guidance, I have conducted a thorough mission analysis of FEMA and directed the agency to focus on three initial operational priorities.
02:30Safeguarding the American people, return primacy to the states, and strengthen state, local, tribal, and territorial capability to respond and recover from disasters.
02:43First, FEMA must refocus on survivor-centric response and recovery.
02:48FEMA needs to remove cumbersome processes for quicker recovery so Americans return to their homes and communities and rebuild faster.
02:56We must find the most innovative and creative methods available to deliver assistance to every American who qualifies for it, while also communing faster, more clearly, and through more modern means.
03:10Second, FEMA needs to return to a model where disaster response and recover are locally led and state-managed, with federal support available when needed.
03:19As the President has said, sometimes FEMA gets in the way.
03:24FEMA should never get in the way.
03:27The original intent of FEMA was to help state, local, tribal, and territorial partners build their disaster resilience, response, and recovery capabilities,
03:36and to provide resources when they are overwhelmed by the scope of the disaster.
03:40FEMA has lost sight of its original intent, but under the leadership of the President and the Secretary, we are returning to this mission focus.
03:51Moving forward, we will continue to encourage increased state and local investment and ownership of disaster activities.
03:57By doing so, we will be better postured to eliminate processes that create delays, backlogs, and survivor frustration, while also increasing coordination with state and local officials.
04:11And third, we must bolster our partners' operational readiness to support our homeland for the risk of today, as well as the threats of tomorrow.
04:19This means returning authority and responsibility to the states and improving our programs and leveraging technology to deliver that support that communities and survivors need when they need it.
04:30The more we build our partners' resilience, the more prepared our nation will be.
04:36By emphasizing these operational priorities, we have narrowed FEMA's focus to what it should have been all along,
04:43making sure that resources are brought to bear to help communities on their worst day.
04:49We are focused on cutting through red tape and ensuring that, when federal assistance is warranted,
04:55we deliver assistance to survivors rapidly, regardless of the political affiliation, race, or creed.
05:01But these are just the initial steps.
05:03The President has appointed Secretary Noem and Secretary Hedsa to lead the FEMA Review Council,
05:09which is conducting a comprehensive review of the agency.
05:12The Council is dedicated to reimagining, not just reforming FEMA.
05:18To that end, I will ensure that FEMA is fully cooperative with the Review Council.
05:23We respect the independence of the Council's review and will welcome its recommendations.
05:27I am confident that the Council will offer the President actionable recommendations for a more efficient federal disaster response,
05:33which is refocused on serving Americans during their darkest days.
05:37Additionally, the President has issued several executive orders to streamline government,
05:42and Secretary Noem and I are committed to ensuring that those executive orders are carried out both in letter and spirit.
05:48Finally, I am a long-time public servant.
05:51I served in the United States Marine Corps as a ground combat officer,
05:54leading Marines in deployments to Afghanistan, Iraq, Africa, and FEMA.
05:57And before FEMA, I served as the Assistant Secretary for DHS's Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction twice.
06:07As long as I am in this role, I will ensure FEMA remains singly focused on the core mission.
06:12This subcommittee has an important voice in this process of change,
06:15and I look forward to working with the committee on the FEMA of tomorrow.
06:19Thank you again for the opportunity to testify today, and I look forward to your questions.
