August 13th, 2025

LOS ANGELES, CA – Today, Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath testified at a FEMA Review Council listening session on the agency’s role and future. She emphasized the importance of strong local, state, and federal partnership in responding to emergencies that are a way of life in Los Angeles County, drawing on the County’s experience responding to the January wildfires.

The FEMA Review Council members included Mark Cooper, former Chief of Staff for former Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards; Bob Fenton, FEMA Region 9 Administrator; Patrick Powers, Designated Federal Officer, FEMA Review Council; and Sean Polster, Chief Deputy State Coordinator, Virginia Department of Emergency Management.

Here are Supervisor Horvath’s remarks to the Council.
Good morning and thank you for the opportunity to speak about the impact and future role of FEMA. 

Los Angeles County, with our ten million residents, has a population of more than 40 US states. 

Emergency preparedness is a way of life for us. We work hard to plan and prepare for disasters, in accordance with best practice. 

But even the largest county in America, supported by a very competent State infrastructure, is unable to manage a disaster like the January Fires without federal support. 

The technical, policy, and financial support from FEMA was critical for LA County. 

And as a former mayor of a small city, I know that is even more true for smaller jurisdictions. 

In the last eight months, Los Angeles County has experienced firsthand just how critical FEMA is to saving lives and helping communities recover. 

When people face total devastation, it is imperative that every level of government show up for them. What is more important than helping Americans in their greatest moment of need? 

When the January fires struck, FEMA was there — on the ground at our Disaster Recovery Centers — helping residents who had lost everything. The centers showed the best of government: federal, state, and local partners working side by side. Your teams were essential to our recovery. 

This kind of hands-on, coordinated federal support is irreplaceable — no other entity can marshal resources and expertise at this scale to meet people where they are. 

We also worked closely with the U.S. Army Corps on debris removal. Their professionalism, responsiveness, and deep connection to our communities set a gold standard for federal-local partnerships and enabled the fastest disaster cleanup effort in recent history.  

In LA County, disasters are not rare events — they happen all the time, often without warning. FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation and Homeland Security grants allow us to prepare, respond immediately, and recover faster. This funding also saves money in the long run by reducing future damage. 

We know FEMA is closing out older disasters, but local governments need a commonsense process that recognizes we’re often juggling multiple emergencies at once. 

We also need flexibility in housing policies. A one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work — a disaster in rural Alabama is not the same as one in rural Los Angeles County. Guidance on Fair Market Rate housing must reflect regional realities.  

We need FEMA’s support in getting temporary supportive housing to impacted residents post a disaster. Additionally, we need to ensure that rental assistance funds match the cost impacted residents will be expected to pay in high cost of living areas and reduce the housing radius that impacted residents are expected to find temporary housing in. 

Finally, cuts to the National Weather Service will make it harder for us to respond quickly — and will increase our reliance on FEMA. 

In closing, I respectfully urge this panel to: 

• Recognize and preserve FEMA’s essential role as the backbone of our nation’s emergency response and recovery system. 

• Ensure continued and increased funding for FEMA grants that empower local governments to prepare for and respond to disasters quickly and effectively. 

• Create flexible, commonsense policies that reflect the diverse realities of disaster-impacted communities across the country, especially regarding housing and recovery resources. 

• Double down on pre-disaster mitigation grants. Given the scale of disasters, mitigation must become an even greater part of FEMA’s mission and FEMA should make this funding more accessible. 

• Oppose cuts to critical agencies like the National Weather Service that undermine local response capacity and increase reliance on FEMA. 

• Develop streamlined coordination processes that acknowledge the simultaneous demands on local governments managing multiple disasters. 

By strengthening FEMA and promoting federal-local collaboration, we can better protect lives, restore communities, and safeguard the resilience of all Americans. 

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