FEMA Nominee Says Debate Over Agency’s Fate is Finished

As far as Craig Fugate is concerned, the question of whether or not the Federal Emergency Management Agency should be removed from the Department of Homeland Security has been answered. It’s staying where it is.

In an article on the Federal Times website, Gregg Carlstrom says Fugate, director of Florida’s Division of Emergency Management and President Obama’s nominee to lead FEMA, should stay under the auspices of the DHS. Fugate made the remarks in front of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee last week.

“I believe that the next confirmed administrator of FEMA needs to be focused on the next disaster, and being focused on that means that debate, as far as I’m concerned, is over,” Fugate told the committee.

Fugate says the agency needs to invest in technology to help it notify citizens about a disaster, and that the agency needs to focus on responding to the consequences of a cyberattack. He also hopes to improve morale at the agency.

“In the emergency management community, we often find ourselves ... without clear guidance, clear direction and authority to do our jobs,” Fugate told committee. “I know of nothing else that saps morale faster than being put in a situation in which I wasn’t allowed to solve the problems.”

To read the full article, click here: http://federaltimes.com/index.php?S=4052317