ICYMI: Senators Murray, Merkley, WA & Oregon Fire Officials Lay Out How Trump is Putting Wildfire Preparedness & Response at Risk
***PHOTOS AND B-ROLL FROM EVENT HERE***
***AUDIO HERE***
Sultan, WA — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, held a roundtable discussion with emergency management leaders in Washington state to hear about the impacts of the Trump administration’s attacks on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other federal agencies, and how these changes are already affecting communities around the state as they respond and prepare for disasters. As climate change continues to increase the severity and unpredictability of natural disasters like wildfires, communities across Washington State need to be able to rely on help from the federal government to both respond to disasters and to prepare for them—but the Trump administration’s reckless and chaotic policy changes are putting that work in jeopardy. Joining Senator Murray for the roundtable were: Lucia Schmit, Emergency Management Director at Snohomish County; Julie de Losada, Chief of Emergency Management at Skagit County; Angel Cortez, Emergency Preparedness Manager at Tulalip Tribes; Hannah Cleverly, Washington State Emergency Management Association Secretary and Deputy Director at Grays Harbor County Emergency Management; Sharon Wallace, Deputy Director of the Washington State Emergency Management Division; Chandra Fox, Deputy Director at Spokane County Emergency Management; and Tony Miller, Director of Emergency Management at Yakima County.
“I am incredibly grateful for all the work our emergency responders do to protect our families—whether it’s floods, tsunamis, wildfires, or mudslides—and I was glad to have the opportunity to hear from emergency management leaders today about the importance of planning and preparing for natural disasters before they strike,” said Senator Murray. “Unfortunately, we have a new administration that doesn’t understand that—and doesn’t seem to care if their policies put people in danger. Trump and his DHS Secretary want to eliminate FEMA completely. They are doing all they can to leave us less prepared by proposing to slash FEMA’s budget, pushing out thousands of employees, freezing funds that were already allocated, and cancelling BRIC grants and other critical programs. It is sending our communities reeling and creating painful and unnecessary chaos for disaster response efforts in Washington state and across the country. States rely on federal support, both to respond to disasters and prepare for them, and the Trump administration’s reckless policy changes have already put years of emergency management preparation work, and lives, at risk. I will keep shining a spotlight on how Trump’s senseless decisions to destroy our emergency management system are threatening the safety of our families and communities.”
Under the Trump Administration, FEMA has undergone significant cuts to staff and funding reductions, leading to worries about the agency’s ability to respond and address disasters effectively. The Trump Administration has proposed to cut FEMA’s budget in the coming fiscal year, pushed out approximately 2,000 full-time staff, from terminations and employees participating in the deferred resignation program, roughly one-third of the total staff employed at the end of 2024, frozen over $100 billion in previously awarded FEMA grants and disaster assistance, and canceled the Building Resilience Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program, which supports states, local and territorial governments, and Tribal Nations as they work to reduce their hazard risk. BRIC has invested over $5 billion in projects nationwide, reducing harm from floods, wildfires, and more. Senator Murray recently led a letter with Senators Van Hollen, Tillis, and Murkowski urging Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and Acting FEMA Administrator David Richardson to reinstate the BRIC grant program—in Washington state, over $200 million in BRIC funding across 67 applications was impacted.
“All disasters begin and end at the local level. This has always been true. But one of the things that makes this nation strong is how we all come together to help during the hard times,” said Lucia Schmit, Snohomish County Emergency Management Director. “When the slide buried the Steelhead Haven neighborhood and Highway 530 near Oso in 2014, killing 43, responders from over 120 organizations—including from other counties and states—waded into the mud. We were all able to work together because of the critical role the federal government plays in supporting a common emergency management system. To hazard that partnership courts disaster.”
“I want to thank Senator Murray for her leadership at the federal level to ensure we are prepared for and can respond to emergencies of all types,” Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers said. “Our county is no stranger to emergencies like landslide, floods, or fires. We live in a remarkably beautiful place, and that comes with the responsibility to limit risks and respond to needs in communities near powerful rivers, active volcanoes, and expansive forests. The federal government has been a key partner in that work, but proposed changes threaten to fracture that partnership. In the long run, I would expect reduced support for planning, mitigation, and recovery to cost our nation more, both in dollars and human suffering.”
“Skagit County is facing increasingly complex threats such as coastal and riverine flooding, encroaching wildfires, and the potential for the Cascadian earthquake. We already have the frameworks in place to address these challenges with FEMA, but effective emergency management is only possible if federal agencies fulfill their obligation to being a reliable and enduring partner to local emergency responders. The federal government must not abandon communities during times of crisis, and we call on them to adhere to their responsibility to support local jurisdictions in emergency preparedness, response, and recovery,” said Julie de Losada, Skagit County Emergency Management Chief.
“Tribes being a sovereign nation, each individually unique, comes with its own sets of challenges. The uncertainty of FEMA potentially being dismantled and pulling up critical funding leaves tribes in a position that makes it harder to implement mitigation strategies, plans, response and to recover in the event or prior to a disaster happening. Tribes also face a historical challenge with their local and state governments that you and I are both aware of,” said Angel Cortez, Emergency Preparedness Manager at Tulalip Tribes. “The reality of today is we need FEMA, and FEMA needs us. We need our states and local partners, and they need us too. None of us will be able to go through a major disaster alone. For disasters are not restricted to borders, political ideologies, or economic status.”
“Whether you call it FEMA reform, change, restructuring, or transformation—what matters is that it’s thoughtful, strategic, incremental, and grounded in the real needs of our communities,” said Sharon Wallace, Deputy Director of Washington’s Emergency Management Division.
“Effective and sustainable resilience in the face of wildland fire requires cooperation and collaboration across all levels of government. We need to have engaged federal partners supporting our efforts in Public Education, Fuels Reduction, and Incident Management, as well as Response and Recovery,” said Chandra Fox, Deputy Director at Spokane County Emergency Management. “The Community Wildfire Defense Grant (CWDG) program provides essential funding to Fire Agencies and community partners, directly supporting fuels reduction and home hardening efforts at the local level. Without this funding opportunity, these efforts would be severely curtailed, limiting their effectiveness and reach.”
Senator Murray is a leading voice pushing back against the Trump administration’s attacks on FEMA and other federal agencies, including NOAA and the U.S. Forest Service, that support disaster preparedness and response in Washington state and across the country. At a budget hearing, Senator Murray grilled Secretary Kristi Noem on the Department of Homeland Security’s sweeping funding freeze, including FEMA disaster relief and public safety grants, and its plans to weaken FEMA and recent denials of disaster declarations. Last week, Senator Murray led Washington state’s entire congressional delegation in a letter President Donald Trump urging him to reconsider the denial of Washington state’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration as a result of the devastating windstorms, heavy rainfall, flooding, and mudslides caused by a bomb cyclone that struck Washington state in November 2024. Murray previously led the entire delegation in a letter urging President Biden to grant the request for a Major Disaster Declaration in January.
Earlier this month, Senator Murray held a press conference with Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and wildfire officials in Washington state and Oregon to sound the alarm on how the Trump administration’s funding freezes and punishing cuts to the workforce at the U.S. Forest Service and other key agencies are seriously undermining wildfire preparedness and response in Washington state and Oregon and putting communities at risk. Senator Murray is working to secure critical investments in wildfire suppression and mitigation—and in our firefighters. Last year, as Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, she secured nearly $22 million in funding for wildfire risk reduction projects across Washington state as part of the USFS Wildfire Crisis Strategy. In the Interior and Environment appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2024, she worked to include essential investments in wildfire preparedness and suppression. And in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, she secured $25 million in funding for wildfire mitigation projects across Washington state.
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