Florida Republicans responded to concerns raised by their Democratic colleagues in Congress about cuts to the National Hurricane Center and FEMA Wednesday morning.
In a virtual press conference last month, Democratic Congressional leaders and former NOAA officials raised the alarm about a $200 million budget cut they fear will make it more difficult to accurately forecast and track storms this Hurricane Season.
Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL 25th District) suggested the impact of the cuts could be deadly.
“If we fail to bolster our weather emergency infrastructure and worsening climate change, more people will needlessly die,” said Wasserman Schultz.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
But US Senator Rick Scott (R-Florida) pushed back on assertions the cuts have left critical forecasting facilities like the National Hurricane Center unprepared.
Watch his press conference in Jacksonville on Hurricane Preparedness here.
“Ken Graham runs the National Hurricane Center, or National Weather Service. He used to run the National Hurricane Center and they’re gonna do everything they can to keep us safe. They have the resources, they’re gonna do it,” said Scott.
Scott also responded to concerns surrounding FEMA, despite conversations at the national level of dismantling or reorganizing the agency.
“FEMA is a payer. Okay? The first responders are the sheriffs, the fire department and individuals like that, and there’s unbelievable sharing in the state and from outside the state,” said Scott.
Congressman Aaron Bean (R-FL 4th District), who is co-chair of the House DOGE caucus, argued conversations surrounding FEMA are aimed at improving the effectiveness of the federal government’s role as a reimbursor after a storm.
“And that’s just part of government where we’re always reviewing and we will continue to do so,” said Bean.
And Congressman Bean said he and other members of the House DOGE Caucus are exploring ways to reorganize FEMA, possibly under another federal agency, to make it, as he described, “more agile” and able to deliver resources faster.
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
