[House Hearing, 117 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



 
    FEMA: BUILDING A WORKFORCE PREPARED AND READY TO RESPOND PART II

=======================================================================

                                HEARING

                               before the

                            SUBCOMMITTEE ON
                        EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS,
                         RESPONSE, AND RECOVERY

                                 of the

                     COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                    ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS

                             SECOND SESSION

                               __________

                             MARCH 1, 2022

                               __________

                           Serial No. 117-46

                               __________

       Printed for the use of the Committee on Homeland Security
                                     


[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

                                     

        Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.govinfo.gov

                               __________
                               
  
                U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE 
48-087PDF               WASHINGTON : 2022 
                              
                               
                               
                               
                               
                               

                     COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY

               Bennie G. Thompson, Mississippi, Chairman
Sheila Jackson Lee, Texas            John Katko, New York
James R. Langevin, Rhode Island      Michael T. McCaul, Texas
Donald M. Payne, Jr., New Jersey     Clay Higgins, Louisiana
J. Luis Correa, California           Michael Guest, Mississippi
Elissa Slotkin, Michigan             Dan Bishop, North Carolina
Emanuel Cleaver, Missouri            Jefferson Van Drew, New Jersey
Al Green, Texas                      Ralph Norman, South Carolina
Yvette D. Clarke, New York           Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Iowa
Eric Swalwell, California            Diana Harshbarger, Tennessee
Dina Titus, Nevada                   Andrew S. Clyde, Georgia
Bonnie Watson Coleman, New Jersey    Carlos A. Gimenez, Florida
Kathleen M. Rice, New York           Jake LaTurner, Kansas
Val Butler Demings, Florida          Peter Meijer, Michigan
Nanette Diaz Barragan, California    Kat Cammack, Florida
Josh Gottheimer, New Jersey          August Pfluger, Texas
Elaine G. Luria, Virginia            Andrew R. Garbarino, New York
Tom Malinowski, New Jersey
Ritchie Torres, New York
                       Hope Goins, Staff Director
                 Daniel Kroese, Minority Staff Director
                          Natalie Nixon, Clerk
                                 ------                                

     SUBCOMMITTEE ON EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, RESPONSE, AND RECOVERY

                Val Butler Demings, Florida, Chairwoman
Sheila Jackson Lee, Texas            Kat Cammack, Florida, Ranking 
Donald M. Payne, Jr., New Jersey         Member
Al Green, Texas                      Clay Higgins, Louisiana
Bonnie Watson Coleman, New Jersey    Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Iowa
Bennie G. Thompson, Mississippi (ex  Andrew R. Garbarino, New York
    officio)                         John Katko, New York (ex officio)
              Lauren McClain, Subcommittee Staff Director
          Diana Bergwin, Minority Subcommittee Staff Director
                    Aaron Greene, Subcommittee Clerk
                            C O N T E N T S
                            

                              ----------                              
                                                                   Page

                               Statements

The Honorable Val Butler Demings, a Representative in Congress 
  From the State of Florida, and Chairwoman, Subcommittee on 
  Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery:
  Oral Statement.................................................     1
  Prepared Statement.............................................     2
The Honorable Kat Cammack, a Representative in Congress From the 
  State of Florida, and Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Emergency 
  Preparedness, Response, and Recovery:
  Oral Statement.................................................     3
  Prepared Statement.............................................     5
The Honorable Bennie G. Thompson, a Representative in Congress 
  From the State of Mississippi, and Chairman, Committee on 
  Homeland Security:
  Prepared Statement.............................................     6

                               Witnesses

Mr. Erik A. Hooks, Deputy Administrator, Federal Emergency 
  Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Department of Homeland Security:
  Oral Statement.................................................     7
  Prepared Statement.............................................     9

                             For the Record

The Honorable Clay Higgins, a Representative in Congress From the 
  State of Louisiana:
  Letter From the Lake Charles Harbor & Terminal District........    18
The Honorable Bonnie Watson Coleman, a Representative in Congress 
  From the State of New Jersey:
  Letter.........................................................    20

                                Appendix

Questions From Chairwoman Val Demings for Erik A. Hooks..........    29
Questions From Honorable Clay Higgins for Erik A. Hooks..........    32


    FEMA: BUILDING A WORKFORCE PREPARED AND READY TO RESPOND PART II

                              ----------                              


                         Tuesday, March 1, 2022

             U.S. House of Representatives,
                    Committee on Homeland Security,
                   Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, 
                                    Response, and Recovery,
                                                    Washington, DC.
    The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m., via 
Webex, Hon. Val Butler Demings [Chairwoman of the subcommittee] 
presiding.
    Present: Representatives Demings, Jackson Lee, Payne, 
Green, Cammack, Higgins, Watson Coleman, Miller-Meeks, and 
Garbarino.
    Chairwoman Demings. The Subcommittee on Emergency 
Preparedness, Response, and Recovery will be in order. Without 
objection, the Chair is authorized to declare the subcommittee 
in recess at any point.
    Good morning, everyone. Our hearing today is a continuation 
of a very important topic that the subcommittee examined on 
January 20, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's work 
force. I am pleased that FEMA Deputy Director Erik Hooks is 
joining our hearing this morning.
    As we all know, the most valuable resources of any 
organization are the men and women on the ground executing the 
mission. FEMA's work force works nonstop to help those in need, 
and I am so grateful for their dedication to their mission.
    As a former law enforcement officer and as a Member of 
Congress now, I have personally seen the incredible work FEMA 
has done to support Floridians in the wake of disasters, like 
Hurricane Charley, Frances, Ivan, Jeanne in 2004, and Hurricane 
Irma in 2017.
    In recent years, FEMA has faced unprecedented challenges 
and growing responsibilities that have taken a toll on the 
agency's work force. FEMA has risen to the challenge of meeting 
an expanded mission scope, helping with everything from the 
resettlement of Afghan evacuees to responding to record-
breaking natural disasters.
    As the threat of climate change continues to grow, sadly, 
severe weather is becoming the new normal, a reality that will 
only further add stressors to FEMA's already burdened workload. 
The demands of climate change puts on the FEMA work force--or 
the demands that climate change puts on the FEMA work force are 
unprecedented. The increase in disaster declaration in recent 
years reflects a significant increase in FEMA's workload. 
Compared to the 1960's, when there was, on average, 18 
disasters every year, we saw 104 major disaster declarations in 
2020, and 58 major disaster declarations in 2021.
    Furthermore, the COVID-19 response continues to be a part 
of FEMA's workload. A U.S. Government Accountability Office 
report found that over half of FEMA's Public Assistance work 
force had spent time working on the COVID-19 response for their 
primary duty station, meaning that fewer FEMA employees can 
focus on long-term recovery for existing projects.
    Regularly, new challenges and threats arise, stressing the 
importance of FEMA's mission. For example, FEMA's work force 
also plays a central role in ensuring our communities are 
protected from man-made threats through the administration of 
several grant programs, including the Nonprofit Security Grant 
Program. The recent spate of bomb threats against Historically 
Black Colleges and Universities, along with houses of worship, 
emphasize the importance of the Nonprofit Security Grant 
Program in guarding our communities against the terrorist 
attacks and the extent that we depend on the FEMA work force to 
provide these critical resources.
    Increased responsibilities and crises have led to 
challenges with recruitment, training, and retention. These 
work force challenges have the potential to jeopardize FEMA's 
ability to meet the mission. In recent years, FEMA has taken 
important steps to grow its work force. Between fiscal year 
2016 and 2021, the FEMA work force grew by almost 8,000 
employees, a significant achievement. However, FEMA still has 
work to do in reaching its target staffing levels.
    FEMA relies on reservist employees that are called upon to 
temporarily respond to disasters as they arise. However, given 
training restraints and the lack of employment protections and 
benefits for these employees, FEMA has struggled to maintain 
the strongest reservist work force.
    FEMA has also taken steps to build a more inclusive and 
diverse work force that better reflects the communities it 
serves. Similarly, FEMA committed to additional accountability 
initiatives to combat workplace harassment and discrimination.
    I applaud Administrator Criswell's prioritization of the 
FEMA work force within the 2022 to 2026 Strategic Plan. 
Furthermore, under the Biden administration FEMA has emphasized 
a new focus on equity, central to which is ensuring a diverse 
and inclusive work force that represents the diversity of 
American communities that it seeks to serve.
    With that, I am very pleased to welcome FEMA's Deputy 
Administrator Erik Hooks before the committee today. I look 
forward to hearing about FEMA's work to support its workplace 
and hear how Congress can best support the agency in its 
mission.
    [The statement of Chairwoman Demings follows:]
                  Statement of Chairwoman Val Demings
                             March 1, 2022
    Our hearing today is a continuation of a very important topic that 
the subcommittee examined on January 20, the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency's workforce. I am pleased that FEMA Deputy 
Administrator Erik Hooks is joining our hearing this morning. As we all 
know, the most valuable resources of any organization are the men and 
women on the ground, executing the mission. FEMA's workforce works 
nonstop to help those in need, and I am so grateful for their 
dedication to the mission.
    As a former law enforcement officer and a Member of Congress, I 
have personally seen the incredible work FEMA has done to support 
Floridians in the wake of disasters, like Hurricanes Charley, Frances, 
Ivan, and Jeanne in 2004 and Hurricane Irma in 2017.
    In recent years, FEMA has faced unprecedented challenges and 
growing responsibilities that have taken a toll on the agency's 
workforce. FEMA has risen to the challenge of meeting an expanded 
mission scope--helping with everything from the resettlement of Afghan 
evacuees to responding to record-breaking natural disasters.
    As the threat of climate change continues to grow, sadly, severe 
weather is becoming the new normal--a reality that will only further 
add stressors to FEMA's already-burdened workload.
    The demands climate change puts on the FEMA workforce are 
unprecedented. The increase in disaster declarations in recent years 
reflects a significant increase in FEMA's workload. Compared to the 
1960's when there were on average 18 disasters every year, we saw 104 
major disaster declarations in 2020, and in 2021 there were 58 major 
disaster declarations.
    Furthermore, the COVID-19 response continues to be a part of FEMA's 
workload. A U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found 
that over half of FEMA's Public Assistance workforce has spent time 
working on the COVID-19 response from their primary duty station, 
meaning that fewer FEMA employees can focus on long-term recovery for 
existing projects.
    Regularly, new challenges and threats arise, stressing the 
importance of FEMA's mission. For example, FEMA's workforce also plays 
a central role in ensuring our communities are protected from man-made 
threats through the administration of several grant programs, including 
the Nonprofit Security Grant Program.
    The recent spate of bomb threats against Historically Black 
Colleges and Universities, along with other houses of worship, 
emphasize the importance of the Nonprofit Security Grant Program in 
guarding our communities against the terrorist attacks and the extend 
that we depend on the FEMA workforce to provide these critical 
resources.
    Increased responsibilities and crises have led to challenges with 
recruitment, training, and retention. These workforce challenges have 
the potential to jeopardize FEMA's ability to meet this mission. In 
recent years, FEMA has taken important steps to grow its workforce. 
Between fiscal year 2016 and fiscal year 2021, the FEMA workforce grew 
by almost 8,000 employees, a significant achievement. However, FEMA 
still has work to do in reaching its target staffing levels.
    FEMA relies on reservist employees that are called upon to 
temporarily respond to disasters as they arise. However, given training 
constraints and the lack of employment protections and benefits for 
these employees, FEMA has struggled to maintain a strong reservist 
workforce.
    FEMA has also taken steps to build a more inclusive and diverse 
workforce that better reflect the communities it serves. Similarly, 
FEMA committed to additional accountability initiatives to combat 
workplace harassment and discrimination.
    I applaud Administrator Deanne Criswell's prioritization of the 
FEMA workforce within the 2022-2026 FEMA Strategic Plan. Furthermore, 
under the Biden administration FEMA has emphasized a new focus on 
equity, central to which is ensuring a diverse and inclusive workforce 
that represents the diversity of American communities that it seeks to 
serve.
    On that note, I am very pleased to welcome FEMA Deputy 
Administrator Erik Hooks before the committee today, and I look forward 
to hearing about FEMA's work to support its workplace and hear how 
Congress can best support the agency in its mission.

    Chairwoman Demings. The Chair now recognizes the Ranking 
Member of the Emergency Preparedness, Response, & Recovery 
Subcommittee, the gentlewoman from Florida, Mrs. Cammack, for 
an opening statement.
    Mrs. Cammack. Well, thank you, Chairwoman Demings. Thank 
you to my colleagues for joining us for this important hearing 
today.
    Now, before I begin, I do want to take a moment to 
recognize all of the hardworking men and women at FEMA. We 
truly cannot thank you enough for your extraordinary work and 
dedication in some of our Nation's toughest times of need, so 
thank you.
    Now, about a month, ago, this committee--this subcommittee 
held a hearing to discuss the challenges facing the FEMA work 
force. During that hearing, we heard testimony from 
representatives from GAO and RAND and from former FEMA 
Administrator Craig Fugate, who, I am proud to say, is a 
constituent of mine and calls the Gator Nation home.
    During the course of the hearing, much of our discussion 
centered around how FEMA's mission sets have grown in recent 
years. FEMA has led the Government's response to the COVID-19 
pandemic, assisted in the Afghan refugee resettlement efforts, 
and provided operational support to the Department of Health 
and Human Services with unaccompanied children crossing the 
border. FEMA has been called upon to handle these new 
challenges, all while facing an unprecedented number of natural 
disasters.
    That hearing, unfortunately, did little to alleviate my 
concern that while FEMA employees are incredibly capable and 
resilient, these multiple mission sets and the abundance of 
natural disasters are exhausting the work force, creating 
burnout. I do recognize that employee burnout is an issue that 
FEMA Administrator Criswell has been working to address, so it 
is my hope that during this hearing today we will learn about 
the proactive steps the agency is taking to remedy this 
problem.
    In addition to discussing these multiple mission sets, we 
also heard from RAND about a survey they conducted on 
harassment and discrimination in the FEMA workplace. The survey 
found that of the personnel that completed the survey, about 29 
percent of employees experienced sex, race, or ethnicity-based 
discrimination. The survey also found that women were more 
likely to experience a civil rights violation, and that rates 
of civil rights of violations varied significantly across the 
different FEMA offices.
    As a result of this survey, FEMA published a Culture 
Improvement Action Plan, which was designed to increase 
employee awareness of the RAND survey results and provide 
transparent communication of work force culture objectives. 
FEMA also made anti-sexual harassment training mandatory across 
the agency.
    Now, I applaud the steps that FEMA has taken to address 
these serious issues and I look forward to hearing more from 
Deputy Administrator Hooks today about how the culture at the 
agency has improved.
    It is also my understanding that RAND has conducted a 
second survey. I look forward to reviewing those results when 
they are published.
    We also heard testimony from GAO, who have conducted a 
number of reports over the years examining the FEMA work force. 
The GAO reports focused on a number of specific concerns, 
including staffing shortages and FEMA's challenges in deploying 
staff with the right qualifications and skills at the right 
times to meet disaster needs.
    Both GAO and former FEMA Administrator Fugate's testimony 
highlighted the difficulties that FEMA has had in growing and 
developing their reservist work force. Ensuring a well-trained 
reservist work force is essential given that they often 
comprise some of the greatest proportion of FEMA staff in the 
field during a disaster.
    Now, before I yield back, Mr. Currie from GAO brought up 
one point during that hearing that has really stuck with me. He 
highlighted that FEMA is currently managing almost 1,000 prior 
disasters that are in some stage of recovery today. That means 
that FEMA is still dealing with disasters from 5, 10, and even 
15 years ago.
    As we look at ways to strengthen and improve the FEMA work 
force, I believe it is critical that we also look at ways to 
update some of FEMA's policies and procedures to help address 
existing backlogs. Addressing this backlog and the reasons 
behind it will help communities recover faster and also will 
help alleviate some of the pressure on the FEMA work force. 
Because as the past few years have shown, there is no longer a 
down season for disasters.
    I look forward to hearing from Deputy Administrator Hooks 
today regarding these challenges facing FEMA and about the 
steps that the agency is taking to move forward in a positive 
manner.
    With that, I yield back to the Chairwoman, Mrs. Demings 
from the great State of Florida. I yield back.
    [The statement of Ranking Member Cammack follows:]
                Statement of Ranking Member Kat Cammack
    Thank you, Chairwoman Demings for holding this important hearing 
today.
    Before I begin, I do want to take a moment to recognize all the 
hardworking men and women at FEMA. We truly cannot thank you enough for 
the extraordinary work that you do, each and every day.
    A little over a month ago, this subcommittee held a hearing to 
discuss the challenges facing the FEMA workforce. During that hearing 
we heard testimony from representatives from GAO and RAND, and from 
former FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate.
    During the course of the hearing, much of our discussion centered 
around how FEMA's mission sets have grown in recent years. FEMA has led 
the Government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, assisted in the 
Afghan refugee resettlement efforts, and provided operational support 
to the Department of Health and Human Services with unaccompanied 
children crossing the border.
    FEMA has been called upon to handle these new challenges, all while 
facing an unprecedented number of natural disasters.
    That hearing, unfortunately, did little to alleviate my concern 
that, while FEMA employees are incredibly capable and resilient, these 
multiple mission sets, and the abundance of natural disasters are 
exhausting the workforce.
    I do recognize that employee burnout is an issue that FEMA 
Administrator Criswell has been working to address, so it is my hope 
that during this hearing today we will learn about some of the 
proactive steps the agency is taking to remedy this problem.
    In addition to discussing these multiple mission sets, we also 
heard from RAND about a survey they conducted on harassment and 
discrimination in the FEMA workplace. The survey found that of the 
personnel that completed the survey, about 29 percent of employees 
experienced sex, race, or ethnicity-based discrimination.
    The survey also found that women were more likely to experience a 
civil rights violation and that rates of civil rights violations varied 
significantly across the different FEMA offices.
    As a result of this survey, FEMA published a Culture Improvement 
Action Plan, which was designed to increase employee awareness of the 
RAND survey results and provide transparent communication of workforce 
culture objectives.
    FEMA also made anti-sexual harassment training mandatory across the 
agency.
    I applaud the steps that FEMA has already taken to address this 
serious issue and I look forward to hearing more from Deputy 
Administrator Hooks today about how the culture at the agency has 
improved.
    It is also my understanding that RAND has conducted a second 
survey, and I look forward to reviewing those results when they are 
published.
    We also heard testimony from GAO, who have conducted a number of 
reports over the years examining the FEMA workforce. The GAO reports 
focused on a number of specific concerns including staffing shortages 
and FEMA's challenges in deploying staff with the right qualifications 
and skills at the right times to meet disaster needs.
    Both GAO and former FEMA Administrator Fugate's testimony also 
highlighted the difficulties that FEMA has had in growing and 
developing their reservist workforce. Ensuring a well-trained reservist 
workforce is essential, given that they often comprise the greatest 
proportion of FEMA staff in the field during a disaster.
    Before I yield back, Mr. Currie from GAO brought up one point 
during that hearing that has really stuck with me. He highlighted that 
FEMA is currently managing almost 1,000 prior disasters, that are still 
in some stage of recovery. This means that FEMA is still dealing with 
disasters from 5, 10, or even 15 years ago.
    As we look at ways to strengthen and improve the FEMA workforce, I 
believe it is critical that we also look at ways to update some of 
FEMA's policies and procedures to help address existing backlog. 
Addressing this backlog, and the reasons behind it, will help 
communities recover faster and also will help alleviate some of the 
pressure on the FEMA workforce.
    Because as the past few years have shown, there is no longer a down 
season for disasters.
    I look forward to hearing from Deputy Administrator Hooks today 
regarding the challenges facing FEMA, and about the steps that the 
agency is taking to move forward positively.
    With that, thank you Chairwoman Demings, and I yield back.

    Chairwoman Demings. The Chair thanks the Ranking Member, 
Mrs. Cammack. Members are reminded that the committee will 
operate according to the guidelines laid out by the Chairman 
and Ranking Member in their February 3 colloquy regarding 
remote procedures. Without objection, Members not on the 
subcommittee shall be permitted to sit and question the 
witnesses. Additional Member statements may be submitted for 
the record.
    [The statement of Chairman Thompson follows:]
                Statement of Chairman Bennie G. Thompson
                             March 1, 2022
    In January, the subcommittee held a hearing on this important topic 
with former FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate, the Government 
Accountability Office (GAO), and the RAND Corporation. I am pleased the 
subcommittee is continuing the conversation with FEMA's newly-confirmed 
deputy administrator, Erik Hooks. At the outset, let me thank the FEMA 
workforce for their service. They play a pivotal role in protecting our 
communities, including in my home State of Mississippi, where we have 
been hit by several disasters over the years.
    FEMA's workforce has been challenged with responding to multiple 
large-scale disasters while being pulled into other critical missions. 
They have carried out response efforts related to the COVID-19 pandemic 
and supported other Federal agencies' missions, such as Operation 
Allies Welcome. FEMA is also responsible for allocating homeland 
security grants, including those designed to help nonprofit 
organizations protect themselves from terrorist threats.
    FEMA's ability to support the Federal Government's efforts in a 
variety of missions demonstrates its workforce's skill and 
adaptability. Nonetheless, the growing number of missions and the 
overall workload have strained the agency. Currently, FEMA is dealing 
with workforce challenges, including hiring, training, and retention. I 
am particularly concerned about hiring challenges within FEMA. Over the 
years, the agency has struggled to hire staff.
    After the devastating 2017 hurricanes, GAO found that FEMA faced 
challenges in training employees and maintaining staffing levels across 
concurrent disasters. Another workforce challenge is retention. In 
2020, more FEMA workers transferred to other agencies than in any other 
year over the past decade. This attrition could be the result of burnt-
out, as FEMA employees have been going from one mission to the next, 
often without any reprieve between missions. Equally troubling is the 
agency is addressing harassment, gender, race, and ethnicity findings 
that were identified in a 2020 RAND Corporation report.
    The Biden administration is focusing on strengthening the FEMA 
workforce through its fiscal year 2022 budget request and in 
Administrator Deanne Criswell's 2022-2026 FEMA Strategic Plan. While 
these are important first steps, more work needs to be done to ensure 
that FEMA has a robust workforce that is fully equipped to handle its 
growing mission. I look forward to hearing from the deputy 
administrator today about the challenges facing the men and women of 
FEMA and what Congress can do to make this dedicated workforce 
stronger.

    Chairwoman Demings. I now welcome our witness, Mr. Erik 
Hooks, deputy administrator of FEMA, Federal Emergency 
Management Agency. In July 2021, Mr. Hooks was appointed by 
President Biden for the role of deputy administrator. He was 
confirmed by the U.S. Senate in December 2021.
    Prior to his time at FEMA, Mr. Hooks spent over 30 years in 
public service in his home State of North Carolina, where he 
focused on public safety, law enforcement, and emergency 
management. In 2017, Mr. Hooks was appointed by Governor Cooper 
to be North Carolina's secretary of public safety and homeland 
security advisor, where he led the State's disaster mitigation 
response and recovery efforts.
    Mr. Deputy Administrator, I understand that this is your 
first time testifying since your confirmation. Welcome and we 
look forward to your testimony.
    Without objection, the witness' full statement will be 
inserted in the record. I now ask Deputy Administrator Hooks to 
summarize his statement for 5 minutes.
    OK, we apparently have some technical difficulties. We are 
going to recess just for a couple of minutes. I ask the Members 
to please stand by. We will notify when we are back up. Thank 
you.
    [Recess]
    Chairwoman Demings. OK. I do believe that we are back. 
Deputy Administrator, can you hear me?
    Mr. Hooks. Yes, ma'am, Madam Chair. My deepest apologies 
for the technical errors.
    Chairwoman Demings. That is OK. Maybe during the question 
what can Congress do to assist, but anyway, we are so glad that 
you are back with us. We are glad that our Members are here as 
well.
    I am going to yield to you to summarize your statement for 
5 minutes.

   STATEMENT OF ERIK A. HOOKS, DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR, FEDERAL 
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY (FEMA), U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 
                            SECURITY

    Mr. Hooks. Thank you, Chair Demings, Ranking Member 
Cammack, and Members of the subcommittee. Thank you for the 
opportunity to discuss FEMA's on-going efforts to bolster our 
Nation's emergency management work force and describe how the 
agency's new Strategic Plan guides this priority.
    FEMA's mission of helping people before, during, and after 
disasters has never been more critical. The field of emergency 
management is at a pivotal moment due to the tremendous change 
in our Nation's risk landscape. In the last 2 years alone, FEMA 
has faced historic natural disasters, a Nation-wide COVID-19 
pandemic, and other challenging missions. Our work force of 
nearly 22,000 emergency managers does exceptional work every 
day, and ensuring their continued readiness and well-being is a 
priority for Administrator Criswell and for me. I will briefly 
describe FEMA's on-going efforts to bolster our work force and 
the broader emergency management community within the context 
of 3 strategic goals in our Strategic Plan.
    Our first strategic goal is to instill equity as a 
foundation of emergency management. We know disasters, both 
natural and otherwise, impact people and----
    Chairwoman Demings. Deputy Administrator, I am so sorry to 
interrupt you. I need to officially do a countdown to 
officially declare us out of recess, so if you would just bear 
with me.
    Five, four, three, two, one. The Subcommittee on Emergency 
Preparedness and Response is now out of recess and is 
reconvening.
    Deputy Administrator, back to you. Thank you.
    Mr. Hooks. Thank you. We know disasters, both natural and 
otherwise, impact people and communities differently, based on 
geography, demographics, and historical and cultural 
characteristics. These unique contexts require tailored 
solutions designed to meet their unique needs. Underserved 
communities often suffer disproportionately from disasters. By 
instilling equity as a foundation of emergency management, we 
can break--we can work to break this cycle and build a more 
resilient Nation.
    FEMA is committed to ensuring our employees increasingly 
reflect the diversity of the Nation. In alignment with our 
Strategic Plan, FEMA is working to recruit individuals from 
underrepresented communities. This includes partnering with 
organizations such as Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities to help create hiring pipelines into the field of 
emergency management. The agency will also continue to invest 
in professional development for all FEMA employees to foster an 
environment where individuals feel safe, valued, and empowered.
    Our second strategic goal is to lead the whole of community 
in climate resilience. Administrative Criswell has called 
climate change the crisis of our generation. In 2020 alone, 
there were a record 22 weather- and climate-related disaster 
events across the United States whose losses exceeded $1 
billion; 2021 was a close second. The growing severity of these 
events increases the time it takes for communities to recover, 
and this process can be further complicated by repeated 
disasters in areas already struggling to bounce back from past 
events. In this regard, I would like to thank Congress for 
providing FEMA with additional resources to mitigate the impact 
of climate change by passing the Infrastructure Investment and 
Jobs Act, which includes funding for grants to establish 
revolving loan funds and additional resources for FEMA's Hazard 
Mitigation Assistance Grant Program.
    Our third strategic goal is to promote and sustain a ready 
FEMA and a prepared Nation. The increase in frequency, 
severity, and complexity of disasters has heightened demands on 
FEMA's work force and on those across the larger emergency 
management community.
    To adapt to that trend, FEMA must expand its approach to 
agency readiness and National preparedness. This expansion 
necessitates an increase in the Nation's overall emergency 
management capabilities at all levels of Government and 
society. Through FEMA's training programs, including the Center 
for Domestic Preparedness, the agency is working to make 
training available to emergency managers where they are at any 
time in their careers.
    Internally, FEMA is also taking steps to improve our 
ability to meet the increasing number of current and emerging 
threats requiring Federal support. As we implement the new 
Strategic Plan and prepare for what lies ahead, our work force 
has never been more experienced or tested. Since joining the 
agency in December 2021, I have been impressed by their 
adaptability, dedication, and hard work. However, Administrator 
Criswell and I recognize that much has been asked of them and 
we are committed to supporting the FEMA work force in every way 
possible.
    As the former secretary of public safety in North Carolina, 
I understand, like many of you, how disasters impact 
communities. FEMA personnel meet people on what is likely the 
worst days of their lives. Our work force demonstrates the very 
best in America.
    Thank you for the opportunity to testify.
    [The prepared statement of Mr. Hooks follows:]
                  Prepared Statement of Erik A. Hooks
                             March 1, 2021
    Chair Demings, Ranking Member Cammack, and Members of the 
subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to discuss FEMA's on-going 
efforts to bolster our Nation's emergency management workforce and 
describe how the agency's new Strategic Plan guides this priority.
    FEMA's mission of helping people before, during, and after 
disasters has never been more critical. The field of emergency 
management is at a pivotal moment due to the tremendous change in our 
Nation's risk landscape. Disasters are becoming more frequent, severe, 
and complex, and the demands placed upon the emergency management 
community are increasing exponentially. In the last 2 years alone, FEMA 
has faced historic natural disasters, a Nation-wide COVID-19 pandemic, 
and other challenging missions. Our workforce of nearly 22,000 
emergency managers does exceptional work every day, and ensuring their 
continued readiness and well-being is a priority for Administrator 
Criswell and for me.
    Under the leadership of Administrator Criswell, FEMA released our 
new Strategic Plan in December 2021. The guiding principles and 
priorities align with President Biden's vision to improve equitable 
outcomes for those we serve; increase our Nation's resilience to 
climate change; and promote a ready and diverse workforce. The 
Strategic Plan serves as the roadmap for the agency over the next 5 
years. Its 3 cross-cutting goals are to: (1) Instill equity as a 
foundation of emergency management; (2) lead whole of community in 
climate resilience, and (3) promote and sustain a ready FEMA and 
prepared Nation. In today's testimony, I will describe FEMA's on-going 
efforts to bolster both our workforce and the broader emergency 
management community within the context of these 3 strategic goals.
    Our first strategic goal is to instill equity as a foundation of 
emergency management. We know disasters, both natural and otherwise, 
impact people and communities differently, based on geography, 
demographics, and historical and cultural characteristics. These unique 
contexts require tailored solutions designed to meet their unique 
needs. Underserved communities often suffer disproportionately from 
disasters and resulting impacts can worsen inequities already present 
in society. This cycle compounds the challenges faced by these 
communities, making it difficult to recover from both current and 
future disasters. By instilling equity as a foundation of emergency 
management and striving to meet the unique needs of underserved 
communities, we can work to break this cycle and build a more resilient 
Nation.
    FEMA is committed to ensuring our employees increasingly reflect 
the diversity of the Nation. The agency will continue to build an 
inclusive workforce which represents the many identities, races, 
ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, ages, cultures, and beliefs of the 
people we serve. In alignment with our Strategic Plan, FEMA is working 
to recruit individuals from underrepresented communities including 
through partnering with Historically Black Colleges and Universities 
(HBCUs) and the American Indian Higher Education Consortium of Tribal 
Colleges and Universities to create hiring pipelines into the field of 
emergency management. The agency will also continue to invest in 
professional development for all FEMA employees to foster an 
environment in which individuals feel safe, valued, and empowered.
    Our second strategic goal is to lead whole of community in climate 
resilience. Administrator Criswell has called climate change ``the 
crisis of our generation.'' Due to climate change, natural disasters 
are more frequent, more intense, and more destructive. In 2020 alone, 
there were a record 22 weather- and climate-related disaster events 
across the United States whose losses exceeded $1 billion. Twenty-
twenty-one was a close second, with 20 weather- and climate-related 
disasters exceeding $1 billion in losses. The growing severity of these 
events increases the time it takes for communities to recover, and this 
process can be further complicated by repeated disasters in areas 
already struggling to bounce back from past events. These cascading and 
compounding impacts pose the greatest risk to our communal and Nation-
wide resilience. I would like to thank Congress for working with the 
Biden-Harris administration to provide FEMA with additional resources 
to mitigate the impact of climate change by passing the Infrastructure 
Investment and Jobs Act. The significant funding made available by this 
legislation for grants to establish revolving loan funds and FEMA's 
Hazard Mitigation Assistance Grants will provide our State, local, 
territorial, and Tribal nation partners with greater financial support 
for projects which invest in a more resilient Nation, reduce disaster 
suffering, and lessen future disaster costs. These investments will 
only grow in importance as climate change continues to alter the 
landscape of risk facing emergency managers across the country. 
Additionally, FEMA is working to make sure the agency's workforce is 
well-equipped to advise our partners on the best ways to build climate 
resilient communities.
    These challenges require that FEMA build a foundational 
understanding of climate science, the impacts of climate change, and 
effective climate adaptation strategies. FEMA will grow a climate-
literate workforce through integration of climate science into policy, 
programs, partnerships, field operations, and training. In 2022, 
Administrator Criswell is directing a new collaborative steering group 
comprised of leadership from FEMA's program offices to begin a multi-
year initiative that incorporates climate literacy into relevant 
training, planning, grant eligibility, and exercises. FEMA program 
offices and the U.S. Fire Administration will further collaborate to 
strengthen the capability of State, local, territorial, and Tribal 
nation partners to advance these critical issues within their pre- and 
post-disaster work.
    Our third strategic goal is to promote and sustain a ready FEMA and 
prepared Nation. The 2017 hurricane and wildfire seasons marked a 
change in disaster operations tempo. Compared to 2016, for the past 4 
years, FEMA has had more than twice as many staff deployed every day of 
the year. By November 2020, FEMA was managing 6 times as many 
disasters, and responses to fire incidents were up 120 percent across 
the Nation. This increase in frequency, severity, and complexity has 
heightened demands on FEMA's workforce and on those across the larger 
emergency management community.
    To adapt to the trend, FEMA must expand its approach to agency 
readiness and to National preparedness. This expansion necessitates an 
increase in the Nation's overall emergency management capabilities at 
all levels of government, as well as the private and nonprofit sectors, 
and among individuals, households, and families.
    Emergency management is a shared responsibility. We need to 
continue to bolster the field of emergency management across the 
country by better defining what it means to be an emergency manager and 
building standardized career paths for the Nation's emergency 
management workforce. FEMA's educational institutions will lead the 
effort to advance the emergency management profession by supporting 
curricula for comprehensive emergency management training, education, 
and professional development for our partners across the Nation.
    Through FEMA's training programs including the Center for Domestic 
Preparedness (CDP), the agency is working to make training available to 
emergency managers anywhere they are, at any time in their careers. 
FEMA is modernizing their operational design so the Nation's Federal, 
State, local, territorial, Tribal nation, non-governmental 
organization, and private-sector emergency managers can meet the risks 
posed by increasing hazards, and obtain the training required to become 
certified within the National Qualification System.
    Internally, FEMA is also taking steps to improve our ability to 
meet the increasing number of current and emergent threats requiring 
Federal support. As FEMA is increasingly engaged in complex missions 
beyond typical Stafford Act emergencies and disasters, the agency must 
envision, plan, and prepare for incidents that do not fall into common 
disaster categories. FEMA must be able to quickly assess, adapt, and 
surge. This effort includes bolstering capacity in the agency's 
incident management and incident support workforce, continuity 
communications, and logistics.
    As FEMA's incident management and incident support workforce 
continues to grow, we will also prioritize the growth of the 
professional workforce which enables them. Our readiness must include 
having the necessary specialists who can support the agency's disaster 
workforce, such as the procurement specialists needed to execute the 
contracts and mission assignments which allows the Government to 
mobilize assistance; the professionals who facilitate data and 
information sharing within FEMA's IT infrastructure; those who ensure 
civil rights are protected in all activities; and the specialists 
necessary to train the workforce, manage operations, and focus on 
employee wellness.
    As we implement the 2022-2026 Strategic Plan and prepare for what 
lies ahead, our workforce has never been more experienced or tested. 
Since joining the agency in December 2021, I have been impressed by 
their adaptability, dedication, and hard work. However, Administrator 
Criswell and I recognize that much has been asked of them, and we are 
committed to supporting the FEMA workforce in every way possible going 
forward. I ask for that same support from each of you.
    As I look back on my time leading the Office of Public Safety in 
North Carolina, I understand--like many of you--what readiness looks 
like from the State and local perspective. No less is asked of our 
Federal responders. The commitment demanded by our profession is not 
small. FEMA personnel meet people on what is likely one of the worst 
days of their lives. They support, they help, and along the way they 
demonstrate the very best of America.
    I look forward to all we will accomplish together as we continue to 
build a more ready and resilient Nation. Thank you for the opportunity 
to testify.

    Chairwoman Demings. I thank the witness for his testimony. 
I will remind the subcommittee that we will each have 5 minutes 
to question our witness. I will now recognize myself for 
questions.
    Deputy administrator, for consecutive years now, FEMA has 
pivoted from one emergency to another, in part driven by the 
impact of climate change. You have shared the administrator's 
feelings about the threat of climate change. What are the top 
work force challenges FEMA is currently facing? How is the 
agency addressing those challenges? The bottom line, deputy 
administrator, does FEMA have a sufficient work force to 
fulfill its obligations?
    Mr. Hooks. Thank you, Madam Chair. You certainly recognize 
the challenges that face not only FEMA, but really face the 
Nation. Those challenges of the dynamic and severity of storms 
has certainly increased, and meeting those challenges head-on 
is what FEMA is charged to do.
    Since my time in coming to the agency in December, I have 
witnessed a dedicated and committed work force that has worked 
tirelessly to meet those challenges, but recognized that those 
challenges are many. So with that, we are constantly evaluating 
our readiness, our cycles in which we allow our employees and 
valued staff they have to rest. We are also working diligently 
to increase our work force.
    As you noted in your opening comments, we have made many 
strides to improve our work force numbers to improve our 
staffing levels. So we are working through a number of 
communities, direct hires in local communities, partnering with 
HBCUs to create that pipeline to establish a new broader base 
of employees, a ready, willing, and able work force to move us 
toward the future.
    Chairwoman Demings. So, deputy administrator, I mean, you 
are absolutely correct that the intensity of the major 
disasters that we are facing, man-made threats as we mentioned 
as well, COVID-19, but my question, do you believe that FEMA 
has a sufficient work force? You have talked about the 
dedication of the men and women, and certainly, I know every 
Member on both sides of the aisle in this committee share that 
sentiment about the dedication. But do you feel that FEMA has a 
sufficient work force to meet the ever-increasing challenges?
    Mr. Hooks. Ma'am, the most specific answer I could give to 
that, that that is a process that is on-going. As threats 
emerge, we have to constantly evaluate the staffing model that 
we have in place and our readiness to take on those challenges. 
We have certainly risen to the challenge, but it has worn out 
our work force. So, we are trying to make those smart 
investments into our readiness plan, in to our readiness cycle, 
and also the development of new employees, too, so that when a 
new disaster hits that they are not just on the roll, but they 
are ready to meet disaster survivors where there are.
    So we are getting better each and every day because we are 
making those investments in their training, as I referred to 
earlier. So the nature of disasters move, you know, very 
dynamically and sometimes we meet those disasters in a way that 
is fully to our satisfaction, but we always want to do more.
    Chairwoman Demings. We have also talked about the 
challenges of a reservist work force, the lack of perhaps 
sufficient benefits, support for those employees, the 
challenges of recruitment, training, retention. Could you talk 
a little bit about that and what steps you are taking to kind-
of mitigate those challenges with keeping a resilient reservist 
work force?
    Mr. Hooks. Yes, ma'am, that is certainly a challenge, just 
like the military relies on reserves, FEMA has relied on a 
ready reserve force to protect our Nation and to respond to 
disasters. But unlike the military, unfortunately, our work 
force or our reserves do not have USERA-like protections that 
would allow them to go back to their jobs and have their jobs 
maintained for them while they are supporting the Nation. I am 
aware that----
    Chairwoman Demings. Let me ask you, deputy administrator, 
let me ask you do you believe that you have the authority, that 
FEMA has the authority to address that issue that you just 
spoke of?
    Mr. Hooks. Not within ourselves. We are working diligently 
with the Congress and it is my understanding that the Senate 
has already made some positive steps with the passage of the 
CREW Act. So it is in the Congress' hands to move forward to 
ensure that our reserve work force is strong, willing, and able 
to move forward.
    Chairwoman Demings. Thank you so much. I now recognize the 
Ranking Member of the subcommittee, the gentlewoman from 
Florida, Mrs. Cammack, for questions.
    Mrs. Cammack. Thank you, Chairwoman Demings. I am actually 
going to follow up on the questions and the line of questioning 
that you were going down, talking about work force challenges, 
talking about the reservist issues that FEMA faces. You know, I 
share the same concerns that you do, that you have as well.
    So, as a follow-up to that, I would like to ask in the 
communities that make up our Nation, and you mentioned so many 
of the reservists have other jobs and it is really a challenge 
in trying to figure out how we can make up this necessary work 
force with reservists at the time. But in communities across 
the country, including mine, community colleges and vocational 
education programs are critically important to helping ensure 
that our local industries and businesses are able to meet the 
work force needs.
    So, can you speak to how FEMA is utilizing our community 
colleges around the country to really bolster the efforts of 
FEMA in addressing so many of the different disasters that our 
country is facing?
    Mr. Hooks. Yes. Thank you so much, Ranking Member Cammack. 
I agree with you that community colleges play a critical role 
in preparing the work force. I come from the State of North 
Carolina where we have a robust community college system as 
well. FEMA is endeavoring to work across the country with 
community colleges because those are areas where key skills and 
developments can be made.
    So that outreach is on-going. It is a process. Many 
community colleges already presubscribe for what curriculum 
that we teach. But in order to professionalize the emergency 
management further, we have to be in our community colleges as 
well as our universities to offer the training and the 
education to provide that ready work force to meet the needs of 
the Nation.
    Mrs. Cammack. So, as a follow-up to that, specifically what 
programs are you promoting and how are you promoting the 
programs through the community colleges? Are there certificate 
initiatives that FEMA puts a premium on? Just looking for some 
more in-the-weeds and in-depth about what these programs are.
    Mr. Hooks. All right. Ranking Member Cammack, if you would 
give me an opportunity to get back with staff and so I can get 
you some more granular and specific information, we will be 
sure to get that information to you. As part of the assessment 
that I have been doing since I have been here the just over 2 
months, I have been engaged in a lot of the broader contexts, 
so as we move toward the weeds, which are necessary because the 
devil oftentimes is in the details, as to how we move 
positively forward, I promise that we will give a more specific 
answer back to you as to what that specific engagement is with 
our community colleges.
    Mrs. Cammack. I appreciate that. I am going to redirect 
here to the RAND report that a lot of this hearing is centered 
around.
    So, we know that this report entitled ``Harassment, 
Discrimination on the Basis of Gender and Race Ethnicity in the 
FEMA Workforce,'' examined the climate of different levels of 
leadership within the agency. Many people found that their 
immediate supervisor and FEMA leadership, they had a more 
positive impression of immediate supervisors rather than the 
leadership. So, can you speak to the steps specifically that 
FEMA is taking in your office as well as Administrator Criswell 
to improve not just having a policy or perception, but 
meaningful change in garnering a more trustworthy leadership at 
the highest levels of FEMA?
    We might be having technical difficulties.
    Chairwoman Demings, I think we lost our witness.
    Chairwoman Demings. Deputy Administrator Hooks, are you 
still with us?
    OK. Staff has informed me that we have encountered 
technical issues. We will now go into recess until those issues 
are resolved. I ask that the Members please keep your cameras 
on, your microphones muted. We will notify you as soon as this 
issue is resolved.
    Members, thank you so much for your patience. This is such 
an important topic. We will be back soon. Thank you.
    [Recess]
    Mr. Hooks. Madam Chair, again we have--we are working 
through some technical issues. Are you able to hear my----
    Chairwoman Demings. OK. Let me do my countdown and we will 
proceed. Members, thank you so much.
    Five, four, three, two, one. The Subcommittee on Emergency 
Preparedness and Response will again come to order. We are out 
of recess.
    Deputy Administrator, I believe that you were in the middle 
of answering questions. Please proceed.
    Mr. Hooks. Well, we actually froze while Representative 
Cammack was starting to--we actually froze while Representative 
Cammack was posing her question. So, if she can expand with----
    Chairwoman Demings. OK. Ranking Member, if you would 
please----
    Mr. Hooks. My apologies for asking the gentlewoman----
    Chairwoman Demings. Not a problem. Ranking Member, please 
go ahead. We will adjust the clock accordingly.
    Mrs. Cammack. I appreciate that. Thank you. Thank you, 
Chairwoman Demings. Deputy Administrator Hooks, I know how 
frustrating it can be trying to get everything in the short 
period of time along with technical difficulties.
    Really, the genesis of my question was as part of the 
findings with the RAND study that came out, there was a 
significant discrepancy between the trustworthiness and support 
of employees with their immediate supervisor versus the higher 
echelons of leadership within the agency. So, I was asking 
specifically what initiatives you in your office as well as the 
administrator's office is taking to really reestablish and 
pivot from the top to ensure that employees feel that they are 
supported and that that culture change is taking place all the 
way through all levels of the agency?
    Mr. Hooks. Again, thank you for----
    Mrs. Cammack. I feel like we are in a karaoke bar.
    Mr. Hooks. Yes, yes, yes.
    Mrs. Cammack. If it is helpful while we navigate some of 
these technical challenges, I am happy for you to issue a 
response in writing.
    Mr. Hooks. Thank you. We can certainly follow up. All 
right. I am hoping that we have it solved. Again, my deepest 
apologies, particularly on such a very important issue.
    I would say this, is that, again, as I described, I came to 
FEMA approximately 2 months ago, but in my career in law 
enforcement and public safety in North Carolina, I have a proud 
record of dealing with issues of sexual harassment and 
discrimination. But beyond that, empowering the work force, so 
that women in particular can feel that they have a safe place 
to work, a place to thrive, a place to grow, and that they can 
contribute to the overall important mission of public safety 
and emergency management.
    I certainly learned of the findings of the RAND report 
during the confirmation process and was deeply troubled by what 
I had read and described behaviors. But what I also learned is 
that FEMA has taken many strides. Administrator Criswell has 
led the way. She came to FEMA approximately a year before I 
arrived there and embedded in our Strategic Plan, we talked 
about earlier, the Chairwoman talked about the Cultural 
Improvement Plan. Well, that Cultural Improvement Plan is now 
part of our overall Strategic Plan and is embedded in the 
fabric of what we do day-to-day, so that nobody thinks that 
this is some isolated program that we deal with issues of 
harassment and sexual misconduct within our agency, or any 
misconduct within the agency.
    So, we want that strong thread woven throughout everything 
that we do. We have done things, such as requiring harassment 
training for all the employees and conducting listening 
sessions for FEMA staff; conducting exit interviews with people 
who have left staff. Because it has often been said that people 
sometimes don't leave organizations, that people leave people. 
So, we want to get at the heart as to why we are losing 
valuable employees.
    I also think that as we improve the dynamics, the 
professionalism, and the diversity of FEMA that that will go a 
long way to ensuring that everyone feels that they are valued, 
that they have a place to thrive, whether they are in the 
minority, majority, whether there is gender, race, or 
ethnicity, that FEMA is here to serve the American public and 
to do it with distinction. I would demand no less of anybody 
that works around me and with me.
    But I recognize that I am very up-front and frank with the 
staff. It is not enough that we have a female visionary at the 
lead of the agency or that I come in with my background and 
being an ethnic minority. This is an American issue and we must 
take it on together. We are up to that challenges and I have a 
history of holding supervisors accountable throughout the ranks 
to ensure that we have a healthy organization. Because if we 
are not healthy internally, we cannot begin to adequately 
implement programs proscribed by Congress.
    Mrs. Cammack. I appreciate your answer and your 
thoroughness and your patience in navigating the technical 
challenges.
    With that, Chairwoman Demings, I yield back.
    Chairwoman Demings. The gentlewoman yields back. The Chair 
now recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey, Mr. Payne, for 5 
minutes.
    Mr. Payne. Thank you, Madam Chair. Sir, in your testimony 
you state that compared to 2016 FEMA has had more than twice as 
many staff employed every day of the year for 4 years, and that 
FEMA must expand its approach to agency readiness and to 
National preparedness. Can you describe for the committee what 
this expanded approach consists of?
    Mr. Hooks. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. It is multifaceted. As we 
have improved our ability to hire within the local communities, 
that enhances our readiness because we are hiring individuals 
who are familiar with those communities that they serve. I 
think that that is a critical part of enhancing our readiness. 
We have individuals who are trusted voices in their 
communities, who come from those communities. Some of them may 
have even been disaster survivors themselves, so they are 
really in touch with those communities that they serve.
    But that is not enough because we have to make sure that 
they are adequately trained and ready to provide the services. 
So, in the training program that I described earlier that we 
are enhancing in a very robust way to reach out to those new 
employees to ensure that they have the skills that they need to 
immediately impact the communities in which they serve.
    I am particularly in tune with this because what I have 
told valued staff through FEMA is that whereas I come in as the 
deputy director with over 3 decades of experience, I am a new 
employee, too. So, I am learning as I lead. So the challenge 
for them is to equip our new employees with the skills that 
they need to meet disaster survivors where they are.
    We also have improved and we have been improving on our 
relationships with our emergency managers all across the 
Nation. I think that that is fostered by the experience of 
Administrator Criswell coming from a local agency and 
background, and I hope to add into that thought process as 
well, bringing a perspective of the States and territories to 
FEMA and combine it with that Federal expertise, with 
professional staff to drive our Nation forward.
    So, all of these things go into our readiness. We have a 
complete condition that as part of their commitment is 
evaluating the readiness of our staff to ensure that they can 
respond effectively and efficiently to all hazards that may be 
presented to them. They are constantly working at evaluating 
where we are at and how we are doing and the inputs and after-
action plans for every disaster, so that we can determine how 
we can do things better.
    I also have experience because I was the executive civilian 
authority for the National Guard under the Governor's control 
in North Carolina. So I am relying on some experiences and the 
models that are in place with the National Guard as they have 
taken on the challenges of readiness in their Reserve work 
force as well.
    Mr. Payne. Thank you for that. My second question, during 
our January work force hearing I spoke with GAO's Chris Currie 
and former Administrator Fugate about the burnout and mission 
impacts of rapid redeployments on employee performance and 
FEMA's ability to meet its mission. Twenty-twenty and 2021 
included record-breaking disasters and strained the FEMA work 
force. How has FEMA dealt with back-to-back deployments during 
the past year to address burnout and improve employee 
performance?
    Mr. Hooks. Thank you, sir. Certainly understanding the 
experience and expertise that Mr. Fugate brings to the 
discussion, and FEMA has concurred with the recommendations 
made by the GAO in May 2020 concerning our work force and we 
agree with the challenges that are before us. So we want to 
ensure that we equip leaders with the knowledge and skills that 
they need to deploy the specific resources to the communities 
that are in need. So that we have to make smarter investments 
as to how we deploy to make sure that individuals, as much as 
possible, can get a rest in between the cycles. It is not 
unlike the many challenges that, again, the National Guard 
faces in how to continue to have a ready work force based on 
the number of missions before that.
    So it begins with leadership, who understand that we have 
to develop our new and emerging staff, so that we are just not 
always calling up the same staff time and time again. We are 
bringing these people into the work force, so we have to equip 
them early with the skills, knowledge, and expertise early in 
their careers and give them an opportunity to grow, and with 
complete oversight because we still want the highest level of 
service to disaster survivors possible and not continually call 
on the same individuals.
    We need to look within the agency, if there are certain 
topics within the agencies that have not deployed in a while 
and we have repeatedly been riding the same horse, so to speak. 
We need to continue to look at that as well.
    Mr. Payne. Thank you. Yes, I think you need to project into 
the future based on 2021 that this is going to be the way it is 
moving into the future with, you know, continual redeployments. 
So you need to keep that in mind as you prepare for the future 
that this might be the standard, the usual of what is going to 
happen for the agency.
    So, thank you, Madam Chair. With that, I will yield back.
    Chairwoman Demings. The gentleman's time has expired. The 
Chair now recognizes the gentleman from Louisiana, Mr. Higgins, 
for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Higgins. I thank my friend and colleague Chairwoman 
Demings and Ranking Member Cammack. Thank you for holding 
today's follow-up hearing.
    When a natural disaster happens, whether it is a hurricane 
or tornado, a winter storm, wild fire, the destruction is 
immediately felt by the community, by the families that live 
there, but these disasters often affect the country as well. As 
the community looks to recover, one significant issue is 
navigating the complexity of FEMA's disaster recovery programs. 
Southwest Louisiana is no stranger to destructive storms and we 
have vast experience. It is part of our culture working with 
State and Federal agencies to recover.
    Still, the overall message that I hear from the citizens 
that I serve and the communities that I represent is quite 
negative regarding FEMA and their interactions with FEMA. They 
have delays in getting applications approved or lack of 
customer service. You know, we all recognize that COVID was a 
part of that, but it is still a reality we have to deal with. 
Navigating FEMA's bureaucracy has been very much a challenge 
for recovery for my State and the district that I serve.
    While I appreciate FEMA putting together a Strategic Plan 
to address staffing issues, I am concerned that there is too 
much focus on issues like climate resilience while other needed 
areas of reform go unaddressed. In my opinion, FEMA should 
first hire the necessary staff to work through the backlog 
casework in public assistance applications for disaster-related 
reimbursements. Delays in this process are too frequent and can 
be detrimental to the success of a community's recovery 
mission.
    I would like to mention to our witness here today, Mr. 
Hooks, I have had some very positive interactions with FEMA, so 
let me mention a compliment because it can work when we work 
together.
    On October 5 last year, I delivered a letter to Ms. 
Criswell, your colleague, regarding some specific applications 
that had been languishing, shall we say, in the bureaucracy. 
Two days later, on October 7, we received a resolution for 
those things and the official announcement resolving those 
issues. So, I am going to ask for your help with this lady 
again.
    We have some specific issues. The Port of Lake Charles has 
millions and millions of dollars, $40-, $50 million of recovery 
projects that are hung up, specific projects. I am going to ask 
our Chairlady to allow entry into the official record a letter 
from the Port of Lake Charles referencing those pending and 
languishing applications, and a letter from my office 
officially requesting specific assistance, which, again, we 
have had success with in the past with FEMA.
    Chairwoman Demings. Without objection, so moved.
    [The information follows:]
        Letter From the Lake Charles Harbor & Terminal District
                                 February 22, 2022.
The Honorable Clay Higgins,
U.S. House of Representatives, 424 Cannon House Office Building, 
        Washington, DC 20515.
    Dear Congressman Higgins: The Port of Lake Charles would like to 
provide an update on FEMA issues we have experienced while trying to 
recover from the devasting effects of Hurricane Laura and Hurricane 
Delta. Listed below are projects that have stalled in the FEMA review 
process. Most of these projects were submitted to you earlier, but 
unfortunately, we have made very little progress in resolving the 
problems we are having with FEMA. Most of these problems reside in the 
project review process at the Consolidated Resource Center (CRC) who 
has been an absolute roadblock and made it extremely difficult to get 
even the most basic of projects obligated. Below are three examples of 
the difficulties we have encountered:
   Project 163662--BT Ship Unloader No. 2--Konecranes/PAAP 428
     The Port has decided not to replace this ship unloader at 
            this time. We have requested a Section 428 PAAP project 
            which will allow the Port to use the funds from this 
            unloader on other projects. The engineering firm hired by 
            the Port recommended throughout their report that the 
            unloader should be decommissioned due to the extensive 
            damage it received. It was not economically feasible to 
            even attempt a repair and the unloader was scrapped. FEMA 
            is now requesting an analysis to be completed on the cost 
            to repair the unloader versus the cost to replace it. This 
            FEMA 50 Percent Rule analysis would be impossible to 
            conduct on a one-of-a-kind, expensive piece of machinery, 
            especially since it has already been demolished and hauled 
            off. The future decisions made by FEMA on the ship loaders 
            and unloaders are the single largest threat to the 
            successful recovery of the Port of Lake Charles and the 
            surrounding economy.
     Estimated amount of funding at stake: $30-$40 million 
            dollars.
   Project 161512--Transit Shed 7
     This building was damaged greater than 50 percent and 
            should be replaced. FEMA first delayed this project by 
            requiring a Consensus-Based Codes, Specifications, and 
            Standards (CBCSS) analysis be completed on this building 
            which wasn't required for the first year of this disaster. 
            After submitting the CBCSS, the 50 percent request was 
            approved by the CRC Validator at 74 percent damaged, as 
            well as approved by their Peer Reviewer. It was in 
            Mitigation when the project was ``called back'' because of 
            a possible request for information (RFI). The CRC RFI 
            requested that the cost of a slab be added to the estimate 
            and the 50 percent calculation equation. Even though the 
            slab was not a damaged element, and the Port was going to 
            reuse the existing slab for the new building, we added the 
            cost of a basic slab in order to move the project forward. 
            This reduced the 50 percent calculation from 74 percent 
            down to 62 percent. The CRC was still not satisfied with 
            the slab cost and is now trying to engineer how the Port 
            builds its structures. There seems to be a concerted effort 
            and intent to keep increasing the cost of a new building 
            which would cause the FEMA 50 Percent Rule calculation to 
            fall below 50 percent. This would mean that the Port would 
            not receive funding to replace a badly-damaged building.
     Estimated amount of funding at stake: $3-$4 million 
            dollars.
   Project 161516--City Docks Transit Shed 16
   Project 161519--City Docks Transit Shed 17
     The FEMA CRC has stalled these two projects for months. 
            The holdup has been that FEMA refuses to recognize that the 
            badly damaged roofs should be replaced in their entirety, 
            and not the piece-meal repair that they are pushing for. 
            The Port has submitted two engineering reports to FEMA that 
            clearly state that both roofs should be replaced to 
            maintain the structural integrity of the building. As a 
            public State entity, the Port is following the professional 
            guidance of the engineers and is replacing the roofs. This 
            will keep the buildings safe for their tenants as well as 
            to make certain that the buildings are insurable while 
            avoiding any liability issues should the roofs not be 
            replaced. FEMA has not done a physical site inspection on 
            either building even though the Port has requested multiple 
            times that they view the damaged buildings for themselves. 
            They instead conducted a ``virtual'' site inspection using 
            photographs. Although the FEMA site inspector stated that 
            the method of repair as replacement in the comments of the 
            site inspection report, the FEMA CRC has chosen to ignore 
            those comments as well as both engineer's reports. They 
            instead have referenced a google earth image taken from 
            approximately 450 miles above the earth. They have stated 
            that there doesn't ``appear'' to be enough damage to 
            justify replacing the entire roof.
     Estimated amount of funding at stake: $6-$8 million 
            dollars.
    We certainly appreciate any assistance you and your staff can 
provide regarding these projects. Please feel free to contact me any 
time to discuss them.
            Yours Truly,
                                           Richert L. Self,
                                                Executive Director.

    Mr. Higgins. Thank you, Chairwoman. The Port of Lake 
Charles, if they can't recover, the economic recovery of the 
entire region is impacted and, indeed, the Nation. Lake Charles 
is the epicenter for energy export, for LNG, for the entire 
Nation.
    So, I ask for the indulgence of our witness today. I am 
asking for the Consolidated Resource Center to take specific 
action on these matters that will be delivered to your office 
today. Deputy Administrator Hook, I very much appreciate you 
being here today. I have enjoyed working with your boss, 
Administrator Criswell. I really hope that we can resolve these 
things. We must. The economic prosperity of the entire State 
and, indeed, the Nation is impacted based upon our performance 
here together.
    You will be receiving my official questions for the record 
in the next couple of days. I look forward to our staffs 
working together. I very much appreciate Chairwoman Demings and 
Ranking Member Cammack for holding today's hearing. I yield, 
Madam Chair.
    Chairwoman Demings. The gentleman yields back. The Chair 
now recognizes the gentlewoman from New Jersey, Mrs. Watson 
Coleman, for 5 minutes.
    Mrs. Watson Coleman. Well, thank you, Chairwoman, for 
bringing us together. Thank you to the Ranking Member and, of 
course, to you, Mr. Hooks. I have got a number of questions. I 
am probably going to run through them. You might want to write 
them down.
    First what I want to do is to bring attention to you a 
letter that I sent to Ms. Criswell on February 14 on behalf of 
all of the New Jersey delegation. We were asking, writing FEMA 
to expedite its information to HUD, so that HUD could allocate 
the money for the disasters which occurred in 2021. I would 
like to know the status of that letter. I would like to know is 
there a deficiency in staffing, even in the administration of 
FEMA, that would somehow delay a response to a request as of 
this nature.
    I also would like unanimous consent, Madam Chair, to enter 
this letter into the record.
    Chairwoman Demings. Without objection, so ordered.
    [The information follows:]
                                 February 14, 2022.
Deanne Criswell,
Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency, 500 C Street, SW, 
        Washington, DC 20472.
    Dear Administrator Criswell: We write today regarding the status of 
data the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) needs 
from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in order to 
allocate funding appropriated by Congress for communities impacted by 
2021 disasters. We ask that you provide this data to HUD as 
expeditiously as possible so that this funding can get to the people in 
New Jersey and other States that desperately need it to recover from 
the devastation of Hurricane Ida.
    As you know, the Extending Government Funding and Delivering 
Emergency Assistance Act passed by Congress and signed into law by 
President Biden on September 30, 2021 appropriated $5 billion in CDBG-
DR/MIT funds for major disasters that occurred in 2020 and 2021. On 
November 1, 2021, HUD announced the allocation of more than $2 billion 
to States impacted by 2020 disasters. The remaining funds would be used 
to address the unmet need from disasters that occurred in 2021, but 
months later, funding has still not been allocated. It is our 
understanding that HUD requires data from FEMA in order to calculate 
the allocation to New Jersey and other States affected by Hurricane 
Ida. We urge you to provide this data to HUD as soon as possible.
    Many reconstruction and recovery efforts in New Jersey cannot 
commence until HUD allocates this funding, and the months of delay have 
had a deleterious impact on the families and communities in our State. 
Many of our constituents were displaced when their homes were destroyed 
by the storm, including hundreds living in public housing. Housing 
shortages compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic have left many residents 
in hotels and motels at Government expense to this day, with no 
expectation of when they will be able to return to their homes. Under 
any circumstances, this uncertainty would be difficult to bear, but 
during the current pandemic, the impact is magnified. Moreover, with 
each passing day, the mold and water damage to the impacted properties, 
as well as the expense to mitigate the damage, only increases.
    We appreciate all that FEMA has done already to help New Jersey 
residents get back on their feet, but we need a better understanding of 
when these calculations for relief awards will be completed. Thank you 
for your prompt attention to this matter, and please do not hesitate to 
contact our offices if you have questions or wish to discuss this 
matter further.
            Sincerely,
                                            Cory A. Booker,
                                              United States Senator
                                           Robert Menendez,
                                              United States Senator
                                        Frank Pallone, Jr.,
                                                 Member of Congress
                                            Tom Malinowski,
                                                 Member of Congress
                                     Bonnie Watson Coleman,
                                                 Member of Congress
                                         Donald Payne, Jr.,
                                                 Member of Congress
                                           Josh Gottheimer,
                                                 Member of Congress
                                            Mikie Sherrill,
                                                 Member of Congress
                                           Donald Norcross,
                                                 Member of Congress
                                               Albio Sires,
                                                 Member of Congress
                                                  Andy Kim,
                                                 Member of Congress
                                        Bill Pascrell, Jr.,
                                                Member of Congress.

    Mrs. Watson Coleman. Thank you, ma'am.
    I understand there is something like 22,000 positions 
already in FEMA. I am interested in a couple of things.
    No. 1 is I am interested in the kind of skills you are 
looking for in who you are hiring and at what levels. No. 2, I 
am looking to understand how you are approaching the better 
numbers in diversity in leadership. Because the information 
that I have suggested there is something like 71 percent of the 
leadership in FEMA is White and male, and that certainly isn't 
a reflection of, (A), the places in which there have been 
multiple devastations, but, (B), our country as a whole. So, I 
would like very much to understand what we are doing 
specifically and how successful FEMA has been in greater 
diversity.
    The last thing I would like to understand is do you believe 
that there is an assessment being done on streamlining your 
process? Because sometimes people get very confused about how 
to actually access resources, what resources they are entitled 
to, et cetera.
    Last, I am not sure how many questions you are going to be 
able to answer, but I do want to say that I am also grateful to 
FEMA because FEMA has stood in the gap in some very important 
areas in New Jersey, and helped us through some very 
devastating times.
    So, while I ask these pointed questions, in no way, shape, 
or form do I want you to think that I don't have an 
appreciation and a respect for the work that you all do.
    I don't know if you want to answer those questions later or 
what.
    Mr. Hooks. Well, it would be a combination of things, but, 
again, thank you for your questions and thank you for your 
unwavering support for our mission and our work force.
    I don't have specific insight into the specific letter that 
you have written to Administrator Criswell, but I will 
certainly loop back in with her on that. I do expect that a 
number of issues that we are working with HUD on the other 
issues, I expect that resolution will come to bear soon.
    Concerning diversity, overall FEMA's work force, it is 
pretty diverse, but as you move up the ranks that diversity 
wanes. There are certain levels in FEMA that do not have the 
diversity that reflect the diversity that we would like to see, 
you know, because it doesn't reflect the rich diversity of our 
Nation.
    Some of those positions are forward-facing in our disaster 
response. So one of the areas that I have tasked specifically, 
you know, many of our professional career is looking at what 
are either some barriers that prevent or--women or minorities 
from moving toward those forward-facing positions of authority 
out in the public. What can we do to foster a better culture of 
diversity?
    Again, it is not enough for the agency lead to be a female 
and for me to be a racial minority, but I have seen at the top 
that the appointments and the hires made, appointments by the 
President and the hires made by Administrator Criswell, is that 
we have a very diverse leadership at the present time. But that 
needs to transcend throughout the ranks and the middle has to 
meet what we see at the very top and what we are bringing into 
our work force.
    Mrs. Watson Coleman. Thank you, Mr. Hooks. I would very 
much like to know the specifics of that, the categories in 
which you have the diversity, the categories in which you are 
looking. I still very much would like to understand the kind of 
skill sets you all are looking for in FEMA at every level just 
as information so that I can be more helpful to you in the 
future.
    With that, I yield back. Thank you, Madam Chair.
    Chairwoman Demings. The gentlewoman's time has expired. The 
Chair now recognizes the gentlewoman from Iowa, Mrs. Miller-
Meeks, for 5 minutes.
    Mrs. Miller-Meeks. Thank you very much, Madam Chair Demings 
and Ranking Member Cammack. I thank you for bringing us 
together for this important testimony.
    Iowa is certainly, like Louisiana, as we heard from 
Representative Higgins, is no stranger to natural disasters, be 
they floods, be they tornados, be they derechos. We have 
certainly had our share of those. I appreciate the comments and 
the questions in addressing the work force in FEMA and 
workplace shortages and labor shortages that you have 
available. Then also, the diversity of talent that is 
necessary.
    One of the other things that we do in Homeland Security is 
cybersecurity. We address cybersecurity. We certainly have had 
many hearings on that in the past year, this legislative 
session. We have seen cybersecurity attacks with the Colonial 
Pipeline, which tremendously affected the Eastern Seaboard, and 
we have also seen the JBS attacks, which affected my own region 
as I have meat producers within my Congressional district.
    So, I think, increasingly, the public both on a personal 
level for their own security of their own financial records and 
on a National security level are very interested in 
cybersecurity. In your testimony you highlighted the importance 
of having professionals who can facilitate data and information 
sharing within FEMA's IT infrastructure. The fiscal year 2022 
President's budget request includes an increase of 20 
positions, 10 full-time employees, and $26.7 million to support 
FEMA's cybersecurity program.
    Given the past issues FEMA has had with safeguarding 
personal information, what specific initiatives will FEMA be 
focusing on and how is FEMA working with other DHS components 
to strengthen its IT work force? Do you have the facility to 
hire the types of people with the expertise that are needed?
    Mr. Hooks. Thank you, Madam Representative, and thank you 
for the question. A very poignant and timely question at this 
time in our history.
    You know, we have often been saying that cyber threats are 
emerging threats. My view is that it is no longer an emerging 
threat. It is a persistent threat and one that impacts both 
Government and non-Government and civilians alike.
    We are pleased to see the positions being made available 
through the offering of the budget. There has been a greater 
emphasis within our own IT infrastructure division to improve 
cybersecurity. We want to make sure that we protect our systems 
and we also need to double down and protect the ability to 
protect personal identifiable information for those impacted, 
for disaster survivors because we don't want them victimized a 
second time.
    We are working very closely with CISA, who is a sister 
agency within the Department of Homeland Security, and 
following all those advisements that CISA leads on to make us a 
more protected and resilient Nation. That also applies to us 
because we can't effectively deliver on our mission if we have 
gaps that make us vulnerable to the many threats that are out 
there, be it from individuals, criminal organizations, or 
nation-states. So that is something I am very mindful of with 
my history as the State homeland security advisor in North 
Carolina. That is something that we talk with all our State 
partners about and it is an emphasis of our grant programs 
moving forward as proscribed by the Secretary for our homeland 
security grants.
    So we are very mindful and take long systems in 
promulgating that idea to our local and territorial partners.
    Mrs. Miller-Meeks. Do you believe that your hiring 
processes will permit you to hire the individuals with the 
expertise needed in a timely fashion or are there barriers that 
we need to consider modifying?
    Mr. Hooks. The barrier is always competing against the 
private sector because they face these challenges as well. So 
issues of compensation and all of those things, those are 
sometimes things that are out of FEMA's direct hands. But what 
I can have a direct impact on is that people see this as an 
opportunity to serve our Nation in a mighty way that goes above 
and beyond salary considerations, so that they are a part of 
something larger in our FEMA mission and, again, in a workplace 
where they would be valued and they know that their 
contributions are lending toward a safer America. But 
compensation helps.
    Mrs. Miller-Meeks. Thank you very much. I thank you for 
your diligence in both protecting the system and people's 
personal information.
    So, thank you, Chair Demings. I yield back my time.
    Chairwoman Demings. The gentlewoman yields back. The Chair 
now recognizes the gentlewoman from Texas, Ms. Jackson Lee, for 
5 minutes.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. My pleasure to have the opportunity, Madam 
Chair. Thank you so very much.
    Chairwoman Demings. Members are reminded to please mute 
your microphones. Please mute.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. So to be on this hearing to discuss with 
the deputy administrator the importance of recruitment, 
training, and retention.
    First, I would like to say, Deputy Administrator Hooks, 
that being in a targeted disaster region, certainly the region 
is not a disaster because of the wonderful people, but it is 
because we are subject to natural disasters really almost on an 
annual basis. So we have ourselves interacted with those 
persons that have FEMA, most of them, I understand, temporary 
employees.
    I do want to say that they have come energetic, with a 
great desire to be helpful and with a great deal of passion. I 
am reminded of Hurricane Harvey when they literally had to be 
with us for months and Hurricane Katrina when we moved a 
quarter of a million people out of Louisiana, in particular New 
Orleans, and they came to the Houston/Harris County area. They 
literally had to be with us for a number of years, so I 
appreciate the work that is being done.
    I am going to pose my question along the lines of 
legislation that I am introducing or have introduced. With a 
nod to the Chairwoman I am hoping that we will have an 
opportunity for a hearing dealing with H.R. 3060, the FEMA 
Modernization Act, where we are looking at--a number of members 
are looking at some of these issues: Improving the Fast 
Response Office; having ombudsmen; establishing a new natural 
disaster medical triage capacity; establishing a program to 
provide education and job training; provide for accurate 
reporting on deaths and missing persons; and collecting data.
    I say that to say that that means an increase in FEMA 
staffing, employees of many different skills. So, let me start 
by your thoughts about developing a permanent staff that deals 
with disasters. My understanding is that they are recruited for 
each disaster, so I am interested in your thoughts about that.
    Then I am also interested in your staffing of individuals 
that are able to deal with the multigenerational population and 
multilingual population that come upon during disasters. Would 
you start with that, Administrator Hooks?
    Mr. Hooks. Yes, ma'am. Thank you for your time and 
attention to the many issues that face FEMA. I am certainly 
aware that FEMA staff upon my arrival here have been educated 
in the vein that they were working----
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Staff being----
    Mr. Hooks [continuing]. With your staff on potential 
legislation. We are committed to continue to work with your 
staff and you and any member of staff to advance the 
modernization of FEMA.
    I have seen in my brief time here a number of staff that 
have moved from being a local hire to being--to move on into a 
full-time career. That is when I talked earlier of creating 
that pipeline, we need to create that pipeline of local 
community hires that are vested in those communities, that 
understand those communities, and that is one of those 
pipelines, where you have to make those investments in those 
skills and abilities. Because FEMA does have a large mission 
set, and so those may be intake, those may be planning, and all 
those. So there are a number of variety of skills that need to 
be taught to new hires, so that they can avail themselves to 
full-time employment with FEMA. So we do have vacancies and we 
try to fill them that way.
    Our outreach to technical and community colleges, as 
described by the Ranking Member, and I promise to get her some 
more additional information about what specifics FEMA is doing 
with that is similarly important as well as our outreach to 
HBCUs. Because as we reach those organizations that have a 
mind's eye on serving underserved communities, we can more 
greatly impact our Nation.
    Again, they come with a variety of skill sets. Sometimes 
they have a skill set or hard skills about learning how to use 
the various systems, but they can also be soft skills on how to 
communicate with the public. You know, having I wouldn't 
necessarily call it a skill, but a heart for people and empathy 
and to meet people where they are.
    Also, all of this flows together, none of it works in a 
vacuum, is that we have to tie this into our readiness cycle, 
so that people know that if I go to FEMA that, yes, I can and 
am subject to be employed, but there will be times for rest and 
restoration. So we are making assessments on their readiness. 
We are making assessments to support them for their mental and 
physical health, so that they can continue to support the 
communities that we must reach all across the country.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you. There was another question, 
Madam Chair, but I don't know whether he heard the question on 
intergenerational staffing to work with people of all ages.
    Mr. Hooks. Madam Chair? I am not able to hear the 
Chairwoman.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Madam Chair? We are not hearing you.
    Chairwoman Demings. I am sorry. Can you hear me now?
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Yes.
    Chairwoman Demings. OK. I would ask that the deputy 
administrator please submit the answer to Ms. Jackson Lee's 
question in writing.
    The Chair now recognizes----
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you.
    Chairwoman Demings [continuing]. The gentleman from--thank 
you. The Chair now recognizes the gentleman from New York, Mr. 
Garbarino, for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Garbarino. Thank you, Chairwoman. Thank you to the 
witness for coming here today.
    I have a follow-up question with what my colleague from 
Iowa was asking regarding cybersecurity. We talked about what 
FEMA was doing for its cyber programs. But Chairwoman Clarke 
and I just recently passed a State and local cybersecurity 
grant program which, when implemented, it is about a billion 
dollars. We got it signed into law. It is imperative, 
increasing resilience in our communities, especially in the 
light of recent attacks from Russia and other foreign 
adversaries.
    FEMA is supposed to work closely with CISA in the 
implementation of this bill. Do you believe FEMA has the work 
force, the appropriate adequate personnel needed to implement 
this program? You know, how can we be more helpful in any 
coordination between FEMA and CISA in ensuring that this grant 
program runs pretty smoothly?
    Mr. Hooks. Thank you, sir. I certainly appreciate the 
question, Mr. Representative.
    The Homeland Security grant and cyber grants in particular 
are extremely helpful to our State, territorial, and local 
partners. The administration of those grants is critically 
important in that we adequately communicate to our local 
partners. We are well-postured and currently working diligently 
with CISA on those very issues and the administration of those 
grants.
    Under the common authority of the Secretary of Homeland 
Security, both agencies are committed to delivering for our 
Nation on those grants as well because we certainly understand 
the importance. There are many communities that simply cannot 
fortify their own cybersecurity posture without that life-
sustaining funding for those grants. So I am deeply 
appreciative.
    We do have the staff to execute upon those grant priorities 
as well. The communities are certainly in need and I am sure 
they are certainly--will be certainly appreciative of those 
funding dollars getting down to those communities to help them 
with their cybersecurity.
    Mr. Garbarino. I appreciate that answer. Thank you very 
much. Again, if we can be any more helpful in making sure that 
this program and any other programs with cyber runs more 
smoothly, please let us know.
    On a separate note, in your testimony you discussed the 
role that FEMA plays in strengthening the emergency management 
work force across the country. My district, Long Island, 
suffered immensely from Superstorm Sandy almost 10 years ago 
and many--and it is sad to say this, but many are still 
rebuilding their homes and businesses, you know, we still 
haven't even fixed half the roads. As hurricane seasons 
continue to batter the communities year after year, can you 
discuss what specific ways FEMA is helping emergency management 
teams at the State and local level to help increase resilience 
to mitigate the impacts of future storms like Sandy?
    Mr. Hooks. Yes, sir. One of the seminal ways that FEMA can 
be of assistance beyond just the transmission of funding is 
being well-partnered and understanding those communities. FEMA 
has engaged over the last few years what we call the FIT 
program, FEMA Integration program, where we have FEMA employees 
embedded with State emergency managers all across the country 
to help better understand their needs. We listen to those State 
directors and that is an on-going process of what they need to 
help augment, not supplant, but augment, their ability to 
mitigate disasters before they start.
    We certainly recognize that an investment on the front end 
of $1 will save $6 on the back end. So we lean in heavily 
toward those hazard mitigation investments on the front end and 
maintain healthy and robust partnerships is our fervent 
endeavor throughout the entire process and, again, coming back 
to FEMA's mission to helping people before, during, and after 
the storm. So we have that three-tiered mission that requires 
us to be there with our partners on blue-sky days, in the 
planning and the execution and anticipation of a storm, the 
storm response, and the recovery. I understand that the 
recovery sometimes can be extremely frustrating because it 
never can come soon enough for disaster survivors. You know 
that in New Jersey. I knew that in North Carolina. I am 
thankful that the entire committee is concerned with it.
    Mr. Garbarino. Thank you very much. Chairwoman, I yield 
back.
    Chairwoman Demings. The gentleman yields back. The Chair 
now recognizes the gentleman from Texas, Mr. Green, for 5 
minutes.
    Mr. Green. Thank you, Madam Chair. Am I audible?
    Chairwoman Demings. Yes, you are.
    Mr. Green. OK, thank you much. I thank the administrator 
for appearing today. I greatly appreciate this opportunity 
because there are many things that are of concern to me, so I 
will move as expeditiously as possible.
    Let us start with linguistics. I have one of the most 
diverse districts in the country. We have the ballot printed in 
4 languages: English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Chinese. When we 
have these unfortunate circumstances, let us call them acts of 
God, I think legally they are called that in many circles, when 
we have these acts of God, we oftentimes find ourselves with 
people coming to our office who want help, but they don't seem 
to be able to have someone to help them in a language that they 
are familiar with. We have to find people sometimes to assist.
    But what do you do or how do we help you with the 
linguistics aspects of this, please?
    Mr. Hooks. Well, thank you, Representative. Certainly an 
important area that we must discuss because if we can't 
effectively communicate with the people in need, we can't 
effectively deliver the programs to the people that oftentimes 
need them the most and who have been impacted the most.
    I would say that overall, as we look at the diversity of 
FEMA, that nearly 13 percent of our staff speak Spanish. So, we 
have to be smart about our deployment so that we really 
understand those communities of deployment, so that we deploy 
the sufficient number of Spanish-speaking and culturally 
competent individuals to deal with those particular unique 
needs. Actually, the 13 percent is in line with the percentage 
of U.S. population, but understanding that you are talking 
about a more concentrated population in the areas that you so 
nobly serve.
    At our Disaster Recovery Centers, we have translators 
available not just for Spanish, but for a number of languages, 
including sign language. If you don't have someone on-site that 
is well-versed in a particular language, we are able to set up 
a virtual call to be able to better communicate with them. You 
know, if COVID has presented any one positive, save for the 
technical difficulties we have had today, we have learned to 
utilize the virtual platforms for greater engagement. So we 
will continue to actually pick up lessons learned through 
tragedies and providing virtual platforms and communications 
and translations for disaster survivors.
    Mr. Green. Mr. Deputy Director, if I may, I greatly 
appreciate your answer. I have two other areas that I would 
like to get into, so let me move quickly and simply ask this 
question. When you are in need in a given area of persons to 
work on a given disaster, how can I impact that process by 
recommending people, helping you to apply personnel from the 
area who will understand not only the language, but they know a 
little bit about the geography? There may be other things that 
they will know that you just don't get by having a person who 
speaks the language. So, is there a way for us to help you with 
that? If there is, could you tell me quickly because I have two 
other areas?
    Mr. Hooks. Yes, sir. Probably the best way, the most 
expedient way is to ensure that the State and local emergency 
management knows what those local resources are because they 
will be in tune with the entire community and can relate that 
to us.
    Mr. Green. All right. Thank you very much. Let us talk 
quickly about signing bonuses. I was at an event just recently 
with another member of the administration and it was a great 
event. We had people who actually work for the Government 
explaining some of the problems that they are having in terms 
of recruitment. Apparently, at Houston, there are signing 
bonuses being given to persons in a given area in the private 
sector. The public sector can't match those signing bonuses. Is 
there something that we can do to help you there?
    I understand loyalty to country and persons want to be of 
help, but those signing bonuses are quite appealing, Mr. 
Administrator. I am just curious as to is there something we 
can do to help you with that?
    Mr. Hooks. Yes, sir. We are totally reliant upon the 
appropriations that are allotted to us from----
    Mr. Green. Something has happened to the quality of your 
voice. I can't hear you.
    Mr. Hooks. All right I am sorry for the technical 
difficulties, but we are reliant upon Congressional approval 
and Congressional authorities. So any discussion that you would 
have that would help benefit us in attracting a greater work 
force, and that includes compensation, we will welcome those 
discussions.
    Mr. Green. OK. I have 2 seconds, 1 second, and I won't get 
to my last topic. I will ask that I be permitted to send 
something to you in writing. Thank you, Madam Chair.
    Chairwoman Demings. The gentleman yields back. With that, I 
want to thank the deputy administrator for his valuable 
testimony. I want to thank the Members for their questions.
    The Members of the subcommittee may have additional 
questions and I know that you do for the witness. We ask that 
you respond expeditiously in writing to those questions.
    The Chair reminds Members that the committee record will 
remain open for 10 business days.
    Without objection, the subcommittee stands adjourned.
    [Whereupon, at 11:20 a.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]



                            A P P E N D I X

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        Questions From Chairwoman Val Demings for Erik A. Hooks
    Question 1. In January, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) 
testified before the subcommittee that staffing shortages in FEMA's 
contracting workforce have exacerbated challenges the agency already 
faces in disaster response and recovery. Post-disaster contracts are a 
key part of the recovery process and can sometimes last for years after 
the disaster occurs. FEMA needs to have a permanent, full-time 
workforce of contracting officials to manage these contracts and ensure 
the billions of dollars allocated to disaster recovery are spent 
properly. According to GAO, 8 of FEMA's 10 regional offices, only have 
1 full-time permanent contracting official. What is FEMA's plan to 
increase contracting staff across its regional offices?
    Answer. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) continues to 
focus on the mission-essential requirements of hiring the highest level 
of talent within the acquisition community to populate our workforce of 
contracting professionals. During the past year, FEMA's Office of the 
Chief Component Procurement Officer (OCCPO) established a hiring and 
retention team with objectives of recruiting talent, retaining talent, 
and assessing the work environment to assure that it is most conducive 
to producing opportunities for professional growth and mission success. 
OCCPO has been filling vacancies on a continuous basis and has improved 
its attrition rate from 8 percent to 5 percent within the last year 
since starting the hiring and retention team in late 2020. FEMA's chief 
component procurement officer (CCPO) has also implemented a mission-
focused process that allows the entire organization of contracting 
personnel to be utilized across all branches of the organization, as 
well as contracting personnel in the Regions, to accomplish mission-
essential needs during steady-state, disasters, and emergencies. As it 
is the responsibility of the CCPO to ensure successful execution of 
contracts in the face of emergencies, disaster response, disaster 
recovery, and post-disaster across the agency, the aforementioned 
approach delivers the ability to manage multiple contingency situations 
simultaneously regardless of the duty location of such staff. FEMA's 
CCPO has placed heavy emphasis on increasing the level of technical 
proficiency within the agency's contracting workforce, the number of 
personnel, and the level of engagement with all 10 regional 
administrators to provide proper oversight and stewardship of 
taxpayers' dollars and execute the agency's mission.
    Question 2a. FEMA is responding to more disasters and crises while 
still maintaining past emergency management practices. In the January 
hearing, Former Administrator Craig Fugate noted that FEMA's disaster 
recovery operations can take decades to finish, which is concerning 
given that FEMA has a history of operating in a workforce deficit.
    What updates is FEMA considering to its disaster recovery model to 
make the agency more efficient, given workforce constraints?
    Question 2b. How is FEMA leveraging technology to address disaster 
recovery operations, ensure efficiency of the existing available 
workforce, and prevent future workforce deficit?
    Question 2c. What specific steps or supports are needed to complete 
long-standing disaster recovery operations, which would allow FEMA 
staff to transition to more recent and future disasters?
    Answer. As climate change increases the frequency and severity of 
natural disasters, and with new and emergent threats such as COVID-19, 
FEMA has had to flex our approach to maintain our ability to execute 
our mission. FEMA constantly evaluates and adjusts our workforce 
strength, training, and composition to be better-positioned to help 
people before, during, and after disasters.
    FEMA is taking specific actions to maximize resources and ensure 
that our processes and technology make recovery as simple as possible. 
First, we have looked to centralize technical and administrative 
resources to be able to support multiple ongoing disasters 
concurrently. For example, our Consolidated Resource Centers (CRCs) 
enabled us to support COVID-19 disaster declarations in every State and 
territory and all Tribal nations with disaster declarations 
simultaneously. Second, we constantly review and improve our processes 
and technology to enable State, local, Tribal, and territorial 
governments to drive their own recoveries and navigate our process. 
Third, we are in the process of assessing the delivery of the Public 
Assistance (PA) program and CRC processes to look for additional 
opportunities to simplify the program for applicants.
    We also focus deliberately on the training and professional 
development of our workforce to set our staff up for success in helping 
individuals and communities recover. In addition to standard, position-
specific training, we have worked to implement leadership growth and 
development programs. For example, the Public Assistance Professional 
Development Academy consists of 120 hours of interactive training that 
enhances the programmatic knowledge, customer service, quality control 
measures, and leadership traits required for successful program 
delivery.
    FEMA is also reviewing and adjusting its force structure, 
regionally and Nationally, to ensure FEMA has the necessary personnel 
to better support the execution of the PA program from declaration of 
an emergency or disaster to the completion of recovery operations for 
all impacted communities. This will allow the agency to plan for and 
provide the appropriate staffing support for all phases of recovery 
while also maintaining a ready workforce to execute future events. This 
also includes recruiting new employees and filling vacant positions 
that support long-term recovery operations, particularly positions in 
the appeals and audits sections where closing disasters can see 
significant delays.
    Question 3a. Last month, the subcommittee held a hearing with 
stakeholders from the American Jewish community about how crucial the 
Nonprofit Security Grant Program is for bolstering security for their 
houses of worship and other religious communities. However, during the 
hearing witnesses described how smaller synagogues and other religious 
communities had difficulty applying to the program.
    As we are nearing a new grant cycle, is FEMA considering providing 
additional outreach for houses of worship given the recent rise of 
threats against houses of worship?
    Question 3b. Given the recent spate of bomb threats against 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), what outreach has 
FEMA conducted to ensure colleges and universities are aware of their 
eligibility for the Nonprofit Security Grant program?
    Answer. As part of our on-going efforts to ensure that all 
nonprofit organizations in need of security resources have access to 
this funding, and in support of Executive Order 13985: Advancing Racial 
Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal 
Government, FEMA is conducting extensive outreach to underserved and 
marginalized communities to provide information and technical 
assistance in preparation for the upcoming fiscal year 2022 application 
period.
   A Technical Assistance Webinar Series began on February 18, 
        2022, and will run through April 1, 2022, to provide nonprofit 
        organizations information on what they can do now in 
        anticipation of the fiscal year 2022 Nonprofit Security Grant 
        Program (NSGP) application cycle opening this spring. 
        Additional Technical Assistance Webinars will be scheduled and 
        delivered throughout the open application period.
   FEMA has led or participated in over 37 virtual outreach 
        sessions focused on the nonprofit community, underserved 
        communities, and vulnerable populations in preparation for the 
        fiscal year 2022 grants cycle:
     Seventeen of these were FEMA-hosted events, and 20 events 
            were hosted or co-hosted by other Federal partners, 
            including the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) 
            Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, the DHS Center 
            for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, and the U.S. 
            Department of Justice (DOJ).
     These sessions have reached over 7,800 individual 
            participants representing over 2,700 associations/
            organizations as of March 15, 2022.
   FEMA has been proactively engaging with and has completed 
        specific outreach sessions, technical assistance webinars, and 
        information-sharing events with the Jewish Federation of North 
        America, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), 
        and the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Additional 
        follow-on events have also been scheduled with the Jewish 
        Federation of North America and the Faith-Based Information 
        Sharing and Analysis Organization in late March and early 
        April.
   To expand NSGP information access even more broadly, FEMA 
        has partnered with the DHS Center for Faith-Based and 
        Neighborhood Partnerships to distribute NSGP materials (fact 
        sheets, Federal resource links, outreach slides, etc.) to over 
        63,000 individuals through their National inter-faith 
        distribution list.
   In partnership with the DOJ Community Relations Service, 
        FEMA also provided an overview of the NSGP during 4 Protecting 
        Places of Worship Forums, reaching faith leaders within the 
        Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Baptist, and interfaith 
        communities.
   Finally, to provide additional customer service capability 
        for nonprofit organizations and houses of worship stakeholders, 
        FEMA created a NSGP-specific email inbox (FEMA-
        [email protected]) used to address stakeholder questions and 
        disseminate information.
     Since its establishment, there have been over 4,000 email 
            transactions, with an average of 50-80 transactions per 
            week.
    Question 4a. The Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) and the 
State Homeland Security Grant Program have proven invaluable in 
protecting our communities from terrorism. While the Biden 
administration is doing a better job of communicating with stakeholders 
about changes to the National priority areas compared to the previous 
administration, we continue to hear applicants' concerns about meeting 
the requirements and the effectiveness of the National priority areas.
    Can you describe some of the steps that FEMA has taken to conduct 
additional outreach and engagement with stakeholders on the National 
priority areas for the fiscal year 2022 application period?
    Question 4b. Please describe how is FEMA considering stakeholder 
feedback on the effectiveness of the National priority areas?
    Answer. FEMA held a series of 12 listening sessions with a variety 
of stakeholders in April and May 2021 to collect feedback on the 
preparedness grant programs and National Priority Areas (NPAs). Through 
these listening sessions, we learned that participants were supportive 
of NPAs but desired greater flexibility in how grant funding could be 
allocated across them. FEMA used this feedback to help inform priority 
and policy recommendations made to the DHS Secretary for the fiscal 
year 2022 programs. Our fiscal year 2022 guidance continues to require 
a minimum 30 percent spend on the NPAs. This year grant recipients can 
allocate 18 percent of the required spend across the NPAs in a way that 
aligns with their jurisdiction's specific needs and gaps rather than 
DHS prescribing a required spend for all 30 percent of this 
requirement.
    In addition to the above feedback sessions, FEMA facilitated a 
discussion between grant recipients and a panel of subject-matter 
experts to:
   Explain what they considered effective project examples and 
        the type of information they looked for during their reviews of 
        NPA projects;
   Discuss resources available to assist applicants and 
        recipients with developing projects under each NPA; and
   Hold an open question-and-answer session with stakeholders.
    FEMA provided a summary of the panel discussion and resource links 
were provided to our stakeholders in January 2022.
    With the recent passage of the fiscal year 2022 Omnibus, and the 
DHS Secretary's final decisions on fiscal year 2022 program changes, 
FEMA held outreach calls with stakeholders the week of March 28 to 
provide an overview of the approved changes in advance of the Notice of 
Funding Opportunity release. This will ensure applicants can have as 
much time as possible to prepare before the application period 
officially opens this spring. On April 6, FEMA also provided the 
Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) key changes, frequently asked 
questions, and fact sheet documents to help applicants get started on 
developing their projects.
    In addition, FEMA is currently hosting a series of webinars 
featuring subject-matter experts across the Department to focus on each 
of the fiscal year 2022 NPAs. These webinars are providing an in-depth 
review of:
   Specific DHS areas of concern and how each of the fiscal 
        year 2022 NPAs was determined,
   How to use HSGP funding to effectively develop projects for 
        these NPAs,
   Additional resources available from across DHS specific to 
        these NPAs.
    Question 5. In your testimony, you state ``In alignment with our 
Strategic Plan, FEMA is working to recruit individuals from 
underrepresented communities including through partnering with 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and the American 
Indian Higher Education Consortium of Tribal Colleges and Universities 
to create hiring pipelines into the field of emergency management.''
    Please provide additional details on your plan to liaise with HBCUs 
and other Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), including which schools 
FEMA plans to partner, the frequency of contact with schools, and 
efforts to liaise with small- and medium-sized institutions.
    Answer. Regarding HBCU and other Minority Serving Institutions 
(MSI) recruitment and outreach, the FEMA recruitment team is currently 
working with the HBCU Emergency Management Workforce Consortium. The 
HBCU Consortium consists of administrators, researchers, and professors 
from various HBCUs with the goal to implement Emergency Management 
Community Emergency Response Team training and experience on HBCU 
Campuses. Howard University is leading this initiative. HBCUs involved 
include:
   Howard University,
   Grambling State University,
   Florida A&M University,
   Morris Brown College,
   Jackson State University,
   Elizbeth City State University,
   Winston Salem State University, and
   Dillard University.
    We expect additional HBCUs to join in the future. The Consortium 
meets monthly, and this engagement allows the FEMA recruitment team to 
expand outreach to the HBCUs involved.
    FEMA's recruitment team has also partnered with DHS to deliver 
HBCU-focused student webinars and career fairs. It is currently 
collaborating with Rutgers University's Minority Serving Institution 
Research Center (which has outreach to over 700 MSIs) to host a FEMA 
webinar with the goal to increase outreach to more MSIs across the 
Nation.
    The recruitment team has attended various HBCU- and other MSI-
hosted/focused careers fairs (e.g., Atlanta University Consortium, 
White House Initiative on HBCUs, HSI Career Collaborative Career Fair). 
We also utilize Handshake, the No. 1 on-line job board used by 
employers to advertise job opportunities to students and alumni to 
target HBCUs and other MSIs to advertise positions and virtual 
informational sessions.
    In addition, in coordination with the American Indian Higher 
Education Consortium, FEMA is planning to increase outreach and 
recruitment to Tribal Institutions and host virtual webinars, advertise 
job and student opportunities, and build relationships with Tribal 
Colleges and Universities and relate Tribal organizations. FEMA is also 
currently posting job opportunities on NativeHire.org, an on-line job 
board platform that focuses on Native American job seekers.
        Questions From Honorable Clay Higgins for Erik A. Hooks
    Question 1. Local individuals and companies are often the best 
contractors in disaster response since they are also affected by the 
catastrophe at hand. Would you agree with this assessment? How has FEMA 
made an effort to work locally and with small businesses? Do you 
believe there needs to be a stronger effort to do so? Shouldn't this be 
especially true for HUB zones?
    Answer. FEMA agrees that local companies are often great sources 
for essential supplies and services during disaster response and 
recovery operations. However, when responding to disasters, experience 
has demonstrated that FEMA's use of advance contracts is the most 
effective approach to managing the immediate and critical need to 
stabilize a disaster area in a manner that prevents further loss of 
life and property damage. Advance contracts also provide the capability 
for FEMA to rapidly deliver goods or services to support emergency 
response and recovery efforts for all survivors, including local 
vendors and contractors, within the impacted area.
    When it is most practicable, FEMA transitions to local contractors 
with the intent to stimulate the local economy of the impacted area. 
The Stafford Act ensures local businesses are given preference during 
emergencies and provides for local area set-asides to ensure that local 
contractors in disaster areas are given preferences to Federal 
contracts in response to a major disaster or emergency. FEMA's OCCPO is 
committed to using local firms in disaster areas to the maximum extent 
practicable as set forth in FAR 26.204, and 42 U.S.C. 5150(b)(1). 
Additionally, OCCPO continuously conducts market research and hosts 
vendor engagements within the small business community to proactively 
identify responsible contractors to support the FEMA mission, also 
helping to ensure FEMA meets DHS's small business goals annually.
    FEMA works diligently with its internal and external stakeholders 
to ensure procurement opportunities are available for members of 
underserved communities, including HUBZones, to the maximum extent 
practical by providing outreach, training, and resources on how to do 
business with the Federal Government. For example, FEMA's Industry 
Liaison Program, in collaboration with contracting personnel from each 
Region, meets proactively and regularly with Minority Business 
Development Councils, the Association of Procurement Technical 
Assistance Centers, and local Small Business Administration Offices to 
increase knowledge of FEMA programs and opportunities in the local area 
and future requirements.
    Question 2. Crosby Government Solutions, located in Houma, LA was 
contracted to conduct emergency response following Hurricane Ida. Some 
of their workers, themselves, were displaced due to this disaster. 
Their compassion and first-hand experience of the tragedy meant they 
went above and beyond for those they were servicing. Do you believe 
utilizing local contractors allows for a better response for 
individuals needs when an emergency occurs?
    Answer. FEMA is committed to utilizing local firms within the 
disaster area during the response and recovery phases of the disaster 
to the greatest extent practicable. FEMA is also focused on stabilizing 
the disaster area as quickly as possible to prevent further loss of 
life and property damage, and the proven solution to doing so is the 
immediate use of advance contracts at the onset of the disaster, 
followed by a transition to local firms as soon as feasible after 
stabilization. FEMA has a requirement within all contracts awarded to 
large businesses to meet a set of small business goals specific to that 
contract. The FEMA small business subcontracting goal for this year is 
43 percent, a goal that has increased over the years and which FEMA 
continues to meet and exceed each year since fiscal year 2017.
    Prior to the start of the annual hurricane season, FEMA's CCPO 
meets with advance contract holders to discuss, among other things, 
small business goals. This is done to ensure the agency proactively 
engages and assists current contractors to continuously develop 
relationships with other small businesses contractors that provide 
goods and services in disaster-prone areas as a subcontractor. This 
approach benefits the small business community, as mission execution 
gained as a subcontractor increases the small business's technical 
experience and past performance history for future contracting 
opportunities as a prime vendor. In addition, the Stafford Act ensures 
local businesses are given preference during emergencies and provides 
for local area set-asides to ensure that responsible contractors in 
disaster areas are given preferences to Federal contracts in response 
to a major disaster or emergency. FEMA is committed to utilizing local 
firms in disaster areas to the maximum extent practicable as set forth 
in Federal Acquisition Regulation 26.204 and 42 U.S.C. 5150(b)(1).
    Question 3. The people of Louisiana were hit by 18 months of 
unprecedented disasters. Severe flooding and subsequent wind damage 
caused by Hurricanes Laura, Marco, Delta, Zeta, and Ida caused nearly 
$150 billion in damages to our State. Congress responded by providing 
$5 billion in disaster relief aid through the Community Development 
Block Grant Disaster Relief (CDBG-DR) program administered by the 
Department of Housing and Urban Affairs (HUD). It is my understanding 
that nearly $3 billion of the $5 billion allocated for disaster relief 
for Hurricanes Laura, Delta, and Ida is sitting untouched at HUD due to 
an expired data sharing agreement between HUD and FEMA. Specifically, 
FEMA has been unable to share damage assessments with HUD that would 
allow HUD to make determinations for funding deployment. Can FEMA work 
with HUD to quickly forge a data-sharing agreement between the two 
agencies?
    Answer. FEMA and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban 
Development (HUD) resumed full data-sharing capability following the 
approval of an improved, compliant Computer Matching Agreement (CMA) on 
March 14, 2022. The HUD-FEMA CMA cited 3 primary purposes for sharing 
data.
    1. To transition HUD housing recipients whose HUD homes are 
        uninhabitable due to a declared disaster or emergency with 
        Individual Assistance authorized from emergency sheltering or 
        FEMA housing assistance back into HUD-assisted housing. FEMA 
        will quickly and efficiently match pre-disaster HUD housing 
        program recipients with emergency sheltering or housing 
        assistance recipients. Matching allows for early coordination 
        between FEMA and HUD regarding HUD clients who are receiving 
        emergency sheltering or FEMA housing assistance. The goal is to 
        identify HUD housing program recipients participating in FEMA 
        programs and return them to HUD housing assistance while also 
        preventing duplication of individual benefits.
    2. To develop the funding formulas to request additional 
        appropriations from Congress and allocate funding for Community 
        Development Block Grant Disaster Relief (CDBG-DR) grant awards. 
        Data associated with this Agreement will be used by HUD to 
        calculate the amount of HUD's CDBG-DR grants, which are based 
        on the number of unmet needs for the disaster. HUD performs a 
        complex grants formulation process using personally 
        identifiable information data from FEMA and the Small Business 
        Administration to generate its CDBG-DR grant allocations and 
        figures estimating unmet disaster needs for the Office of 
        Management and Budget and Congress.
    a. After calculating allocations for CDBG-DR grant awards, HUD will 
            enter a data-sharing agreement with CDBG-DR grantees and 
            provide a subset of the data used for making the allocation 
            to the applicable CDBG-DR grantee so the CDBG-DR grantee 
            can do planning and market the use of grant funds. These 
            data are not used for determination of benefits.
    3. To support duplication of benefits checks conducted by CDBG-DR 
        grantees for CDBG-DR grant-funded programs, HUD will request 
        data from FEMA on an as-needed basis to share with CDBG-DR 
        grantees. HUD's data request will be based on the specific 
        program requirements specified in an approved CDBG-DR Grantee 
        Action Plan, such as data for all survivors meeting specific 
        criteria related to tenure, geographic area, and type of FEMA 
        benefit receipt. The data will be provided to facilitate 
        expedited program implementation while preventing the 
        duplication of benefits already received from FEMA. All data 
        sharing from HUD to CDBG-DR grantees will occur in accordance 
        with agreements between HUD and the CDBG-DR grantees that 
        address requirements related to the use and protection of the 
        data. FEMA will support HUD by providing data analysis and FEMA 
        assistance data to HUD.
    As cited in purposes 2 and 3, Louisiana is now eligible to receive 
FEMA data per the data-sharing agreements established directly with 
HUD. In accordance with purpose 2, HUD requested data pursuant to the 
tenets of the approved CMA, and FEMA generated datasets in accordance 
with the needs of Louisiana and the data-sharing components of the HUD 
CMA. As a result of this process, HUD announced CDBG-DR allocations on 
March 22, 2022 for the remaining $3 billion of the total $5 billion 
appropriated in Pub. L. 117-43. In accordance with purpose 3, FEMA will 
provide the datasets to HUD who, in turn, will provide the datasets to 
Louisiana.