Even as Congress deals with deficit-cutting, state officials from across the country seek more money to cope with earthquakes, wildfire, floods and more. The resulting tension between economy and safety will complicate some upcoming congressional decisions.
"We all know that the work we do is faced with uncertainties; however, (federal) assistance should not be one of the unknowns during an unpredictable event," said Mike Dayton, acting secretary of the California Emergency Management Agency.
Federal firefighter funding is "simply insignificant," Dayton told a House panel Thursday. "Burdensome bureaucratic hurdles" impede pre-disaster mitigation efforts, he said. Cities including Sacramento and Bakersfield would be better protected from floods if the state instead of the federal government could choose how to allocate catastrophic planning block grants, he said.
"California's risks are unique and underscore the unparalleled need for federal investment," Dayton told the House transportation subcommittee on economic development, public buildings and emergency management.
The panel's hearing Thursday morning helps set the stage for Congress to reauthorize the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The overdue reauthorization will coincide with congressional efforts to nip-and-tuck federal spending, or possibly slash it deeply.
"Reducing costs goes hand-in-hand with improving our emergency response system," said panel chairman Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Atwater. "The reality is that we can both cut costs and improve emergency responsiveness."
Last month, Denham and the senior Democrat on his subcommittee introduced a FEMA reauthorization bill. The initial bare-bones, three-page bill is likely to be elaborated on in coming months.
Sometimes lambasted and sometimes lavished with praise, FEMA has an annual budget of more than $6 billion. The agency also seems busier than ever. This year, President Barack Obama has issued 86 major disaster declarations and 26 emergency declarations, more than in all of 2010. In addition, FEMA also distributes about $4 billion annually in grants.
FEMA's Assistance to Firefighters Grant program, for instance, aids states and localities. In 2010, grants provided equipment for the West Sacramento Fire Department, personal protective gear for the Merced County Fire Department and training for the Fresno Fire Department, among other recipients.
Nonetheless, Dayton complained that California isn't getting its fair share. He noted that 134,000 acres burned in California wildfires last year, while the state has received on average $5.92 per capita in the firefighter grants. Maine, where only about 318 acres burned in wildfires last year, received on average $41.31 per capita.
Redistributing grants can be dicey on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers fight to retain their state or localities' share. California officials, for instance, protested loudly earlier this year when FEMA dropped Sacramento, Oxnard and Bakersfield from the Urban Area Security Initiative program.
In 2010, the three California cities received a total of about $7 million from the Urban Area Security Initiative program, which was meant to help high-threat urban areas prepare for emergencies.
FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate agreed that it should be possible to cut costs and streamline decision-making.
"The more efficient our operations are, the more people we can support," Fugate testified.
Follow Michael Doyle on Twitter
ON THE WEB Federal Emergency Management Agency web site
MORE FROM MCCLATCHY:
Haley Barbour relative defrauded FEMA after Katrina, judge rules
