The FEMA Disaster Recovery Center at Weaverville Town Hall on March 29, 2025 in Weaverville, North Carolina. (Photo by Allison Joyce/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The Federal Emergency Management Agency could look significantly different by next year’s hurricane season, with state and local governments shouldering more of the responsibility for natural disaster response and recovery.

Members of both political parties have long criticized FEMA, but a bipartisan bill moving along in Congress combined with President Donald Trump’s disdain for the agency may provide momentum for a big shift in emergency management.

Trump has said repeatedly he doesn’t support FEMA’s current structure and wants to see a special review council he put together propose a complete overhaul of the agency, possibly eliminating it entirely. That’s provoked deep concern among some local and state officials who don’t see how they would have the funding or background to handle a sudden natural disaster.

“We want to wean off of FEMA and we want to bring it down to the state level,” Trump said in June. “We’re moving it back to the states so the governors can handle it. That’s why they’re governors. Now, if they can’t handle it, they shouldn’t be governor.”

Trump’s FEMA Review Council, a 12-member board led by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, has until mid-November to write a report detailing its recommendations for the president.

But, as Noem has noted several times during the group’s two public meetings, Congress holds authority over FEMA and would need to sign off on any major changes.

Lawmakers, some of whom have spent years working on federal emergency management issues, aren’t waiting for the review council’s report to get started.

House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves, R-Mo., ranking member Rick Larsen, D-Wash., Florida Republican Rep. Daniel Webster and Arizona Democratic Rep. Greg Stanton released their bill in late July, before the review council held its second meeting. It does not aim to eliminate FEMA.

“FEMA is in need of serious reform, and the goal of the FEMA Act of 2025 is to fix it,” Graves wrote in a statement. “This bill does more than any recent reforms to cut through the bureaucracy, streamline programs, provide flexibility, and return FEMA to its core purpose of empowering the states to lead and coordinating the federal response when it’s needed.”

Separately, a U.S. House spending committee is recommending a substantial boost in FEMA funding for the next fiscal year.

Make FEMA a Cabinet-level agency?

Stanton said during an interview with States Newsroom on Wednesday the Transportation Committee’s bill  “recognizes the challenges we have learned from past disasters; that sometimes the rules and regulations in place make it very difficult for victims of natural disasters to get the help that they need, whether it be housing or even financial assistance.”

The legislation, he said, focuses on four broad improvements:

• Making FEMA a Cabinet-level agency instead of housing it within the Department of Homeland Security;
• Emphasizing mitigation projects that lessen the impact of natural disasters;
• Streamlining processes that have become too complex over the years; and
• Adding flexibility so states can choose the type of housing or other support that best helps their residents following a natural disaster.

Stanton does not support Trump’s inclination to eliminate FEMA, arguing the federal government should help when local and state governments are overwhelmed by the scale of a natural disaster.

“That’s the whole point of it, that Americans help our fellow Americans at their point of greatest need,” he said.

But Stanton added he’s willing to read through the FEMA Review Council’s report once it’s released and work with its members to improve the agency.

“I’m open-minded,” Stanton said. “If they have good ideas that actually will strengthen FEMA, I’m all ears.”

The bill, while a sign of bipartisan progress in an increasingly polarized Congress, still has several steps to go before reaching Trump’s desk. To gain his signature, lawmakers may need to blend in some of the review council’s recommendations later this year.

A handful of outside groups, including the National Emergency Management Association, sent the committee a letter applauding the bipartisan group for its work so far but hinting they expect changes in the coming months.

“We recognize and appreciate that the legislation is part of an ongoing effort to modernize FEMA and ensure its programs reflect current and emerging challenges,” the four organizations wrote. “In that spirit, we also await the work of the FEMA Review Council and understand that its recommendations may inform refinements to the legislation.”

‘We’re going to have to turn to our own resources’

The review council’s two public meetings so far haven’t included much debate. The members have mostly shared general statements about grievances with FEMA and issued some warnings for state governments that rely heavily on the federal government.

Phil Bryant, former Republican governor of Mississippi, said that states should prepare to begin spending much more on natural disasters.

“We’re going to have to turn to our own resources,” Bryant said. “States are going to have to develop that emergency response fund, take some of their rainy day funds or funds that they may want to use for musical events and put it into disaster recovery.”

Larger states or those with strong economies may be able to absorb some of the cost that the federal government has carried for years, but other members of the council have cautioned their colleagues against going too far.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said the committee will need to clearly explain what costs state and local governments will be responsible for and which will be covered by the federal government.

He also highlighted the challenges of completely reshaping FEMA while it’s in the middle of responding to natural disasters ranging from hurricanes to wildfires to tornadoes.

“We’re going to be changing the tires on this car while this car is barreling 100 miles an hour,” Youngkin said.

Jane Castor, mayor of Tampa, Florida, signaled the panel’s recommendations should take into consideration that many small or rural areas won’t be able to raise the amount of funds they’ve received from FEMA.

“The locals should be prepared to respond to these incidents in the immediate aftermath,” Castor said. “But as was stated before, there are some — London, Kentucky, and Asheville, North Carolina — (where) this is probably the first time that they’ve probably experienced anything like this. And so we have to be there to help them through the worst of their time.”

Noem has been blunt in her assessment of FEMA, calling the agency “disastrous” and “incompetent.”

She’s also been clear that Trump doesn’t expect incremental changes but an entirely new approach to how the federal government responds to natural disasters.

“The president’s vision is that FEMA would not be in the long-term recovery model,” Noem said. “He wants the state and local governments and emergency management directors to lead response immediately when something happens in a state or jurisdiction and for us to be in a supporting role; a financial role that would be there much in a state block grant model.”

A wary eye on Trump panel

Local and state officials throughout the country are keeping a close eye on the Trump administration’s review council, wary of the implications a loss in federal disaster response would have on local and state governments.

Houston, Texas, Controller Chris Hollins said on a call with reporters in August the city has typically put away between $25 million and $30 million for natural disasters with the expectation that FEMA would help with additional costs.

After Trump proposed eliminating FEMA, Hollins began encouraging city leaders “to take a broader look at what’s going to be necessary to be self-reliant. But that’s an incredibly tall task.”

“If we’re all on our own, it’s going to put our individual finances in an extreme state of turmoil, because we’re either going to have to tax our citizens and our residents at extremely high rates to have enough money to be prepared, or we’re going to intentionally roll the dice and run the risk of being unprepared when these moments come,” Hollins said. “And you know, both of those are unacceptable predicaments.”

Minnesota Auditor Julie Blaha said on the same call that some communities will need years or even decades to build up the type of reserve needed to cover just one major natural disaster.

“In a small town it’s going to be pretty hard to put away millions of dollars, and by the time you can get a reserve of millions of dollars, you are likely to have another disaster,” Blaha said. “The only way to respond to that, you have to go into debt, and you have again increased costs.”

Two committees and a funding boost

Congress has a two-track system for determining the size and scope of federal departments like FEMA — authorizing committees, which set policy and generally determine each agency’s mission, and the appropriations committees that provide funding through annual bills.

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s bipartisan bill represents a significant step on the authorizing side. But the legislation still has to make it through committee debate, the House floor and the Senate before it could reach Trump’s desk.

Separately, the House Appropriations Committee released a partisan bill earlier this summer that would provide a robust $31.8 billion for FEMA during the next fiscal year, $4.5 billion higher than the agency’s current spending level.

During debate on the legislation, Florida Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz proposed an amendment that would have blocked any federal funding from being used to eliminate FEMA.

“Yes, FEMA needs fixes but FEMA helps all of our communities and we can make it better and should be making it better without killing it,” Wasserman Schultz said. “The states cannot handle the responsibilities of FEMA in the aftermath of a storm on their own. That is simply not possible.”

Republicans opposed the amendment, arguing the spending panel shouldn’t do anything that would tie the hands of the review council, the authorizing committees, or Trump.

Oklahoma Republican Rep. Stephanie Bice sharply criticized FEMA during debate, saying the agency “isn’t working anymore” and has “become bloated.”

But Bice also made the point that federal funding is necessary, saying she was trying to address issues within her district “where FEMA hasn’t paid for disaster debris removal for two years.”

“These communities cannot afford the huge costs of debris removal for two years or more when FEMA doesn’t pay them, reimburse them for the services that they have provided,” Bice said. “This can’t continue.”

Dems say Congress in charge

Democrats on the committee, including Maryland Rep. Steny Hoyer, urged their GOP colleagues to support the amendment, pressing for any changes to FEMA to be made solely by Congress.

“If FEMA needs reforming, and I may certainly agree with that, we are the reformers,” Hoyer said.

North Carolina Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards, who represents western sections of the state devastated by Hurricane Helene, said he opposed the amendment because he wanted to see a complete overhaul of FEMA — though he appeared to back the idea that lawmakers should decide what changes and when.

“There are few people in this room that have more up close and personal interaction with FEMA over the last eight months than I,” Edwards said. “Up until Sept. 27, FEMA was nothing more than a line item on a budget for me. Since Sept. 27, I’ve very much been getting an education.

“I can tell you that FEMA needs major reform and Congress is best suited to do that.”

How much would you pay to swim in a clean lake? How much to take a breath of fresh, clean air? To fish in a pristine stream? You may not ever think about that, but there is somebody who does -- a lot.

On this episode, meet the professor who’s working to understand the economic value of a clean environment.

Host: Amy Barrilleaux

Guest: Dan Phaneuf, Professor, Agricultural and Applied Economics, Unversity of Wisconsin

Resources for You: 

Clean Wisconsin: Fighting for Clean Water

A new piece of research has sparked lively debate about how best to treat an EV battery, especially for those hoping to maximize its lifespan. With replacement costs still high, it’s no surprise that owners want clear answers on whether gentle driving or spirited use is better for long-term health.

Also: Breakthrough EV Battery Patent Could Charge In Minutes And Cross A Continent

EV batteries are still hugely expensive to replace, even if prices have fallen, so it’s only natural that anyone in for the ownership long-haul would want to look after theirs by driving and charging carefully. But a recent study published in the scientific journal Nature led some to believe that getting stuck into the right pedal on a regular basis and enjoying an EV’s performance could extend battery life.

The study, ‘Dynamic cycling enhances battery lifetime,’ compared the kind of discharge profiles achieved by a constant-current cycle in lab conditions with dynamic charging and discharging profiles from real-world EV use. It found that batteries subjected to the supposedly more gentle constant-current tests aged more rapidly than the more realistic ones.

Interpreting the Science

But before you head off to absolutely beast your EV down the highway, feeling like you’ve just been told a daily diet of Big Macs and beer will ensure you live to 120, it’s worth hearing what the battery diagnostic specialists from Aviloo have to say on the matter.

Aviloo’s own field tests of 402 identical EVs found that driving enthusiastically was a sure-fire way to shorten a battery’s lifespan, Auto Motor und Sport reports. The reason is that driving hard increases energy consumption and that means more charging cycles, more battery stresses and accelerated aging.

“If you drive efficiently, you save around ten percent of energy in the life cycle,” Aviloo’s Nikolaus Mayerhofer told AMS. “This means that 100,000 km (62,000 miles) with economical driving roughly corresponds to the battery load of 110,000 km (68,000 miles) with an aggressive driving style.”

Practical Advice for Owners

Aviloo isn’t suggesting the authors of the dynamic charging study got it wrong, only that other people misinterpreted their results. Its advice for anyone looking to maximize their EV’s battery life is unchanged: drive efficiently, and unless really necessary don’t fast-charge, charge over 80 percent or leave a car with a ton of juice in it for long periods.

But if that all sounds like too much work or just plain boring, all is not lost. In a recent German study a VW ID.3 lost only 8 miles (13 km) of range after four years and 107,000 miles (172,000 km), despite almost always being charged to full and often being left parked up fully charged.

In a bid to protect its car industry, as well as hit back at Chinese carmakers for receiving unfair subsidies from their government, the European Union has been imposing hefty tariffs on imported EVs from the People’s Republic since October 2024. However, Chinese brands are already looking to circumvent the tariffs as much as possible by setting up local production facilities and, at least for the time being, increasing their focus on hybrids.

Where There’s a Will, There’s a Way

Hybrids sit in a relatively safe zone, since they’re only partially covered by the EU’s tariff system. Combined with the fact that they remain popular with European buyers, it’s no surprise that Chinese automakers are boosting hybrid imports at record levels.

Read: Toyota Finally Blinks As Europe’s EV Market Closes In

A recent report from Dataforce reveals that BYD registered 20,000 plug-in hybrids in the EU through the first half of the year, more than three times the number of PHEVs it imported during the whole of 2024. In addition, MG has imported more PHEVs across January-June than it did in all of 2024. Lynk & Co is also importing more PHEVs to Europe than ever.

Increasing their focus on hybrids greatly benefits Chinese firms. Every EV that BYD sells in Germany is hit with a base 10 percent duty and then a 17 percent additional duty, bringing the tariff up to 27 percent. For the best-selling Atto 3, these tariffs add about €10,000 ($11,600) to the electric SUV. By comparison, the plug-in hybrid BYD Seal U only has to deal with 10 percent duties, or the equivalent of €3,999 ($4,600) based on its €39,999 ($46,600) starting price.

The impact is even more significant for SAIC, which sells MG models. It has to deal with the highest EU tariffs of 45.3 percent for its imported EVs. So, through the first six months of this year, it has sold 60 percent fewer EVs across the continent, but has increased registrations for the hybrid MG HS, MG ZS, and MG 3.

Changing Tactics to Circumvent Obstacles

“It was only a matter of time before the Chinese manufacturers changed their strategy after the introduction of the special tariffs in order to increase their profitability in Europe,” the director of the Center Automotive Research in Germany, Beatrix Keim told Handelsblatt.

It’s understood the European Commission is aware of the loophole being exploited by Chinese brands, but it does not appear to be concerned. Instead, it remains hopeful it’ll be able to work things out by having talks with China’s aggressively expanding automakers.

Hurricane forecasts are now much more accurate, 20 years on — largely because of federal government research.

(Image credit: David J. Phillip)

Against all odds, the Chilean Navy has rescued a survivor from a fishing vessel that went missing off Tierra del Fuego on Thursday. The four fishermen aboard the vessel were harvesting sea urchins, and the crew disappeared along with their vessel, the Ana Belen.

Good Samaritan fishermen located the survivor - who was wearing a black wetsuit - in an area known locally as the Bahia Sea, near the western entrance to Beagle Channel. The maze of inlets at the westward fringe of Tierra del Fuego bears the full brunt of the region's stormy weather, and this creates real challenges for shore access. The survivor could not be reached by helicopter because of powerful downdrafts from the cliffs above, and heaving surf made it impossible to get a small boat near to the rocky shoreline.

To complete the retrieval of the survivor, a Chilean Navy helicopter dropped a rescue swimmer into the water near the rocks, and he swam through the waves and climbed up on shore to reach the fisherman. Then, together, they got back into the frigid water and swam out to a pickup point. 

"The extraction lasted approximately 25 minutes, which was vitally important since they had to swim to the rescue boat that was waiting for them in a safe place," said Serio Surriba, commander of the naval aviation unit in Puerto Williams. 

The survivor has been identified as Juan Andrés Rojas Casco, a Paraguayan national. The search for the three other missing fishermen continues, and the Chilean Navy has pledged to make "every effort to find the rest of the crew." 

???? El Helicóptero Naval N-44 del Distrito Naval Beagle ejecutó una compleja maniobra para rescatar a un tripulante de la lancha motor “Ana Belén”, siniestrada el jueves en un sector austral de la jurisdicción.#ArmadaEnMagallanes #ArmadaPorChile pic.twitter.com/2rHEw6H79H

— Armada de Chile (@Armada_Chile) August 24, 2025

The missing have been identified as Joel Bogado, Fernando González, and César González, also Paraguayan nationals. Casco, who knows the circumstances of the sinking, has provided information to help authorities in the search for the other men. The authorities believe that there is a strong possibility that the others - like Casco - made it to land and may still be alive, if they can survive the freezing winter temperatures of the Magallanes region.
 

Malaysia is doubling down on shipbuilding with two key investment milestones achieved last week. At the forefront is Malaysia’s Pahang State, which is betting big on maritime development. Last week, Pahang signed a lease agreement with Teroka Majubina Holdings for the development of the Tanjung Agas Hybrid Shipyard Complex in Pekan, a small town on Peninsular Malaysia’s east coast.

The $18 billion project will be implemented in three phases in an area covering 1,000 acres. The construction of the project is expected to begin in eight months. The first phase will involve developing a green vessel recycling facility; the second component will include a shipbuilding center, providing ship construction and maintenance services; and lastly, the third phase includes building oil and gas storage facilities.

“With the establishment of the shipyard complex, Pahang will emerge as a regional maritime hub, providing competitive services in shipbuilding, green ship recycling and oil and gas hub,” said Wan Rosdy, Head of Pahang State.

The state is also implementing a similar project in the Gebeng industrial area, the Kuantan Maritime Hub (KMH), located about 35 miles to the north of Pekan. The $500 million project is being developed by Muhibbah Engineering and is scheduled for completion in 2034.  

The KMH project covers a 500-acre site, with some parts reclaimed from the sea. The hub is expected to host industries ranging from commercial shipbuilding and ship repair to defense and technical training.

These flagship projects are important for Malaysia to retain a long-term standing in the global shipbuilding sector, according to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority’s CEO, Sikh Shamsul Ibrahim.

“Malaysia should always remain vigilant of rising competition from lower cost yards in neighboring economies such a Vietnam and Indonesia. We should start focusing on reducing reliance on foreign automation tools, by approaching local robotic manufacturing in Malaysia, which could build a whole new automated system integration to improve productivity in our shipbuilding landscape,” added Sikh Shamsul.

As of June, the authority said it has approved shipbuilding and ship repair sector investments worth over $230 million, showing sustained interest by the private sector to invest in the Malaysian shipyard sector.

This month, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) held a keel laying ceremony for a new Multi-Purpose Mission Ship (MPMS) in Turkey. The event marked another milestone in the construction of MMEA’s largest vessel, with the steel-cutting ceremony held last month.

Construction is under way at Desan Shipyard after a memorandum of understanding with MMEA back in February. The signing of the construction contract followed in May, with the vessel scheduled for delivery in 2027. The construction project also involves cooperation with other Turkish defense industry companies such as Aselsan and Havelsan. The two companies will be involved in the installation of advanced weaponry, detection and communication systems.

The 99-meter-long vessel will serve deep sea operations lasting 28 days without resupply. It will have capacity for 70 crew members and additional room for 30 passengers. For surveillance and interdiction, it will be equipped with two unmanned aerial vehicles, four fast interceptor craft, a helicopter deck and detention compartments.

According to MMEA, the vessel will be deployed for surveillance in Malaysia’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), especially in the South China Sea. In the past few years, Malaysia’s EEZ has become a hotspot for illegal Ship-to-Ship (STS) oil transfers. This has mainly involved older ships carrying sanctioned Russian and Iranian oil, raising concerns about compliance, safety and pollution.

Recently, Malaysia has introduced new regulations with an aim to curb shadow fleet STS transfers. Some of the efforts include closing the notorious Tompok Utara anchorage and layup area near the Singapore Strait. However, MMEA emphasizes that it requires enhanced operational and patrolling capabilities to curb increased criminal activities in Malaysian waters.

Last year, the agency got a budgetary allocation of $159 million to procure new vessels and maintain existing ones. Almost half of this allocation - $82 million - went into the acquisition of the MPMS. Another $37 million went into the procurement of two New Generation Patrol Craft (NGPC).

A shipyard worker has been charged with murder in connection with a shooting aboard a vessel under construction at Huntington Ingalls Industries' Ingalls Shipbuilding division, and the circumstances of the incident are under investigation. 

At about 0730 hours Friday morning, the police department in Pascagoula, Mississippi responded to the Ingalls yard after a report of a shooting. Ingalls' management initiated a lockdown protocol, including a shelter-in-place order for all onsite personnel.

All 8,000 workers on the site were organized into sections and the police searched through these groups one by one until they found the suspect, "which worked out very great," Pascagoula Police Chief Terry Scott told reporters.  

The police took the suspect in custody after about 90 minutes of searching, and the remains of one deceased employee were recovered at the scene. The Pascagoula Police Department has named the suspect as Curtis James Jr., 25, a resident of Mobile; and the victim as Tahj Johnson, 27. James has since been charged with murder in connection with the shooting. 

Curtis James Jr. (Jackson County Sheriffs Department)

James and Johnson were coworkers in the Ingalls paint department, and the two men had a disagreement, the police reported Friday. Local media reports suggest that James had had an argument with Johnson earlier in the week and again just prior to the shooting.

The suspect does not appear to have targeted other personnel or the vessel itself. The ship in question was the newly-christened destroyer USS Jeremiah Denton, according to USNI, and it sustained no meaningful damage.

James has a history of prior arrests, according to the local Fox News affiliate, but in all cases the charges were dismissed.  

It is not yet clear how James' gun made it past gate security, and Ingalls is investigating. The gun has not been found.

"Today is a day that we hoped would never happen here in our shipyard," said Ingalls President Brian Blanchette. "I am deeply saddened by the events of today, and I extend my sincerest condolences to our victim’s family."

The last workplace shooting at Ingalls occurred 20 years ago. In 2005, quality assurance worker Alexander L. Lett shot two supervisors after he was denied a transfer. One victim died and one was critically injured; Lett pleaded guilty and is serving a life sentence.