Protecting Arkansas Communities in the Wake of Natural Disasters

We’ve all heard the saying, “April showers bring May flowers,” but those spring showers can sometimes turn into severe weather that brings devastating impacts to our communities, homes, and infrastructure. This spring, just about every corner of the Natural State was impacted by tornadoes and severe storms. The compounding damage from these natural disasters brought an abundance of devastation – lives were lost, homes were destroyed, and businesses were impacted, resulting in an estimated total damage of $8.8 million for every county in Arkansas affected.

As a lifelong Arkansan, I stand shoulder-to-shoulder with my friends and neighbors who agree that our current disaster relief efforts, most notably the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), are not working the way they should for our communities. As lawmakers from across the country arrived in Washington after a productive district work period, the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hit the ground running by holding a full committee markup of the Fixing Emergency Management for Americans (FEMA) Act of 2025.

In this markup, we discussed the FEMA Act legislation and provided amendments to strengthen and streamline our federal government’s disaster and recovery programs. Additionally, this bill makes FEMA a cabinet-level agency that is held directly accountable to the President. This will ensure a more effective and efficient response for our communities that protects taxpayers and cuts burdensome federal red tape.

As several of our neighboring states prepare for hurricane season, states in the west battle wildfires, and winter weather peeks around the corner, it is vital that Congress acts swiftly to strengthen our federal recovery programs and create greater transparency around the emergency management process.