North Carolina Democratic Rep. Deborah Ross said Wednesday that her state received millions in disaster aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency the day after Sen. Thom Tillis publicly admonished the Homeland Security secretary for failing to release the funds.
Ross said during a House Judiciary Committee hearing with DHS Secretary Kristi Noem that her state had received the funds. An employee at the agency confirmed to NOTUS that the funding was approved for the state on Wednesday.
Ross criticized Noem for her policy requiring her personal approval of all FEMA expenses over $100,000, which the lawmaker said delayed disaster funds for her state.
“In fact, Senator Tillis, as I’m sure you remember, lambasted you and the failure of your department in dispersing these funds,” Ross said. “And then magically, about $80 million got released today, for which we’re thankful. But we shouldn’t have to have a U.S. senator or a representative or another representative come to you directly to get you to do your job.”
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A spokesperson from FEMA told NOTUS that the “projects were approved last week, and any suggestion that the timing of the funds’ release is connected to the Secretary’s hearing is false.”
“For your reference, FEMA observes a standard three-day embargo period before announcing approved funding,” the spokesperson told NOTUS in a statement. “To be very clear, the release of these funds is not related to the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing or any remarks by Senator Tillis or others.”
“Unlike the previous administration’s unprepared, disgraceful, and inadequate response to natural disasters, the Trump administration is committed to ensuring Americans affected by emergencies will get the help they need in a quick and efficient manner,” the spokesperson added.
Tillis, who is retiring at the end of his term, scolded Noem during a Senate Judiciary Hearing on Tuesday for the delay in his state’s disaster aid following Hurricane Helene.
“Whether or not they released for this morning, I don’t know,” Tillis told NOTUS on Wednesday afternoon when asked about the funding. “They had a similar release last week. But the fact is that we’re talking millions, and we’ve got billions in backlog. So good on them. Now, actually get back to that best practice I talked about yesterday.”
After Ross called for her resignation, Noem defended herself.
“The state of North Carolina has received billions more in Helene relief disaster assistance than President Biden committed,“ Noem said in response.
“Because we appropriated the money,” Ross replied.
California Republican Rep. Kevin Kiley asked Noem at the hearing for her signature on a FEMA hazard mitigation grant in his state. Noem denied that she has a policy requiring her approval for grants.
“I do not have a requirement that I sign off on grants [over] $100,000,” Noem said, insisting that the grant wasn’t with her office. “I do have a requirement on renewing contracts because I find credible fraud and inefficiencies, and that’s from American taxpayers and government contracting. But grants, I do not.”
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