Ruben Gallego, Mark Kelly Demand FEMA Reimburse Pima County for Shelter Service Program

Senators Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ) demanded the reimbursement of Pima County, Chicago, and Denver for the provision of Shelter and Services Program (SSP) claims they filed through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in a recent letter to Acting Administrator Robert Fenton.

The Context

The Shelter and Services Program (SSP) is a FEMA program that provides funding to communities to temporarily house non-citizens released from Department of Homeland Security (DHS) custody.

In May, a federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ruled that DHS needed to pay any outstanding SSP claims within two weeks.

Gallego and Kelly's Demand

As a result, Sens. Gallego and Kelly demanded that FEMA pay out claims filed in Pima County, Arizona, by designating a primary point of contact for reimbursement claims and answering questions on how DHS and FEMA will comply with the court order.

"Arizona localities and service providers fulfilled their responsibilities under this program, and courts have agreed the agency's actions to limit reimbursements were unlawful," the Senators wrote. "FEMA should now provide the clarity, transparency, and timely reimbursement as required under the agency's own program rules pre-termination. We urge you to comply with these obligations without delay."

FEMA Under Scrutiny

Gallego and Kelly are not the only Arizona Democrats unhappy with FEMA under President Donald Trump in recent months; Representative Greg Stanton (D-AZ) has also singled it out.

In January, Rep. Stanton called for the resignation of former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, arguing that problems in Texas, California, North Carolina, Hawaii, and several other states were evidence of systemic dysfunction and her failure as a leader.

In May, Rep. Stanton called for an investigation into claims that DHS diverted resources from FEMA into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which could violate the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act (PKEMRA), which mandates that the Secretary of Homeland Security cannot divert FEMA resources in a way that inhibits FEMA's ability to respond to crises.