GAO adds disaster assistance to high-risk list, urges FEMA to simplify aid and limit scope of federal involvement
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Summary
GAO added improving delivery of federal disaster assistance to its 2025 high-risk list and told the committee FEMA is overextended; GAO staff recommended clearer survivor roadmaps, better coordination across agencies, and tighter criteria for federal declarations.
GAO told the House Oversight Committee that it added improving the delivery of federal disaster assistance to its 2025 high-risk list because the system is fragmented, frequently overextended and costly.
"Storms are becoming more frequent and intense," Comptroller General Gene Dodaro said, noting that "in the last 10 years, the federal government's appropriated $500,000,000,000 for disaster assistance" and that FEMA was managing more than 600 disasters, some lingering for years.
The nut graf: GAO said the federal response is spread across more than 30 agencies with overlapping rules; survivors and communities face confusing requirements and inconsistent timelines. GAO staff recommended a set of reforms to streamline delivery, including a survivor-facing roadmap describing what assistance is available, clearer federal-state decision rules for disaster declarations, and better cost-estimating practices for catastrophic events.
GAO witness Chris Curry, who leads GAO disaster work, told the committee that the survivorexperience often requires applicants to "pull the assistance out of FEMA" and that the process is fatiguesome and fragmented across agencies. GAO suggested FEMA review the per-capita threshold it uses to decide whether to engage and noted a suggestion that better triage could reduce federal involvement in some cases; Dodaro said GAO estimated FEMA could be noninvolved in roughly 27 fewer disasters if the evaluation better accounted for state and local capacity.
Members from storm-affected districts urged faster action. North Carolina Rep. Fox, who described severe recent hurricane losses in his state, said survivors need a clear timeline and expectations for aid. GAO staff recommended consolidating automated eligibility checks where appropriate and improving program coordination to shorten how long survivors wait for assistance.
Ending: GAO said it will continue work on FEMA and recommended Congress consider legislative clarifications that help FEMA focus resources on truly catastrophic needs while encouraging state and local preparedness.