© 2026 Western New York Public Broadcasting Association

140 Lower Terrace St.
Buffalo, NY 14202

Toronto Address:
130 Queens Quay E.
Suite 903
Toronto, ON M5A 0P6


Mailing Address:
Horizons Plaza P.O. Box 1263
Buffalo, NY 14240-1263

Buffalo Toronto Public Media | Phone 716-845-7000
BTPM NPR Newsroom | Phone: 716-845-7040
Differing shades of blue wavering throughout the image
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

FEMA Is Unsalvageable, Senate Panel Says

A temporary FEMA Disaster Recovery Center in New Orleans, La., Thursday. A Senate inquiry concluded that FEMA should be abolished.
Mario Tama
/
Getty Images
A temporary FEMA Disaster Recovery Center in New Orleans, La., Thursday. A Senate inquiry concluded that FEMA should be abolished.

A Senate committee calls for the end of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the target of harsh criticism after Hurricane Katrina struck last year. The Senate Homeland Security panel's report on the federal response to the hurricane says that FEMA's functions should be repackaged in a new agency.

The new agency would be a part of the Department of Homeland Security, as is FEMA. The recommendation was among 85 suggestions the panel set forth. Other items in the report, including detailed findings on what happened before and after the storm, will be released in the coming days.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Pam Fessler is a correspondent on NPR's National Desk, where she covers poverty, philanthropy, and voting issues.