Democrats in Congress believe that the Department of Homeland Security’s secretary, Kristi Noem, is depleting disaster funds in an effort to pressure them to end the agency’s shutdown.
Four Democratic staffers familiar with the funding situation told NOTUS that they see her decision to suddenly release $5 billion in long-awaited disaster relief as politically motivated, describing the news as a sudden about-face for FEMA and Noem.
“Essentially, what Noem appears to be doing is manufacturing a DRF crisis to play politics,” one Democratic staffer with knowledge of the situation told NOTUS. “And spending down this money intentionally so she can put pressure on Dems to end the shutdown.”
With the DHS shutdown about to drag into its third week, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s sudden release of the money will leave behind only about $4 billion for the nation’s emergency-response infrastructure.
Trending
In response to the shutdown, FEMA has restricted travel for disaster response in what it said was an effort to save money in the event of an actual catastrophe. And for the last several months, states have been begging for the billions that have suddenly been made available this week.
“It’s clear she’s rushing to spend down what’s left of the Disaster Relief Fund to force Congress’s hand in funding negotiations because she refuses to make any changes to how ICE and CBP operate in our communities,” Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson, ranking member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, said in a statement to NOTUS.
FEMA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Democrats anticipate that Noem may release another $1 billion in long-awaited hazard-mitigation funds next week, further depleting the Disaster Relief Fund down to about $3 billion, a source familiar with the situation told NOTUS. NOTUS found in January that more than $1 billion in hazard-mitigation grants were among those still stuck in a review process Noem implemented in July 2025. Noem has faced extensive criticism for her decision to require that she personally approve expenses over $100,000.
“She’s flipped around and decided to release all of this money that she’s been holding up personally, and was on her desk and should have been released a long time ago, to create this Disaster Relief Fund crisis,” another staffer familiar with the situation said.
Another $1 billion release would drain the fund to a historically low number that would cause FEMA to drastically restrict its spending so that it can remain prepared for a catastrophic event. The agency has reached that status just seven times in the last two decades.
“What we’re seeing out of FEMA is chaos. One day they put the Disaster Relief Fund in immediate-needs-funding status, the next they release $5 billion,” said Sarah Labowitz, a disaster researcher at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “Disaster recovery in America is in desperate need of a reliable, steady hand that doesn’t play politics with people’s worst days.”
Such a low reserve puts additional pressure on Democrats to find a way to end the shutdown and refill the emergency coffers — a balance they would need to strike with their desire to implement tighter restrictions on the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration-enforcement operation.
“Nothing moves lawmakers like a looming DRF shortfall. If obligation timing contributes to a rapid visible decline in the DRF, it can increase pressure on Congress in ongoing funding negotiations,” one current FEMA employee told NOTUS over text.
FEMA staff have warned that the agency’s leadership could lead to a Katrina-level disaster, with some employees telling NOTUS that the agency’s focus on cost cutting and retribution has threatened its effectiveness.
Authors
