Top Republicans demand answers as billions in FEMA aid still go to Covid: 'legitimate concerns'

Exclusive: A top Republican lawmaker sent a scathing letter demanding numerous facts and figures from FEMA Administrator Dean Criswell after discovering that nearly half of Congress' recent appropriations for humanitarian aid were spent on hurricane-related interests.

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said FEMA has lifted its August restrictions on immediate needs funds (INF) starting Oct. 1 — shortly after Hurricane Helen hits Florida.

While FEMA's recently criticized funds used for immigrant issues are formally separate from disaster relief (DRF), Ray said funds related to the COVID-19 response fall under the disaster relief package.

“The American people have legitimate concerns about the availability of FEMA funds to respond to this hurricane and future events in the near term,” wrote Roy, who sits on the House Budget Committee.

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“FEMA is rapidly spending billions in the Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) on non-immediate needs, including billions in unnecessary COVID-19 funding, which threatens to deplete the fund even with nearly two months left until the hurricane season,” he added. . done

Roy called the decision to lift INF restrictions “questionable” and said that as of Wednesday, FEMA would have spent $344 million on Helen response efforts.

He questioned the “massive amount” of funds earmarked for COVID-19 relief nearly two years after the official coronavirus “emergency” ended.

$1.2 billion was earmarked for the state of California alone, and nearly half of the DRF funds initially delayed due to INF restrictions went to COVID-19 projects, according to a FEMA document obtained by Roy.

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Swannanoa residents experience severe flood damage from the Swannanoa River in western North Carolina on Sunday, September 29, 2024. (Travis Long/The News & Observer/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Roy went to Criswell to demand answers as quickly as possible about why FEMA lifted the INF restrictions because the devastating images on Smokey were so public.

He also requested specific numbers for allocations for COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 projects, as well as for Helen and Milton recovery efforts.

“Please explain how FEMA will ensure that COVID-19 projects do not threaten FEMA’s ability to use the DRF to respond to future disasters in the absence of a large increase in congressional appropriations,” he added, pitching the idea that Congress could ban DRF funds. will no longer go to Covid-19 projects.

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Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) speaks at a press conference. (Getty Images)

“If we are going to allocate dollars to disaster relief, both FEMA and Congress must ensure that the DRF prioritizes people affected by disasters…” he said.

Hurricane Helen devastated parts of Tennessee, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia – completely destroying critical Interstate 40 in Haywood County, North Carolina cities such as Asheville, NC, Newport, Tennessee, and Damascus , Virginia, were inundated by floodwaters despite their combined height.

The effects of the massive storm were felt as far west as Tishomingo, Mississippi, and the Cumberland Plateau of Kentucky.

Within days, Hurricane Milton made landfall south of Tampa Bay and spawned several tornadoes across the Sunshine State, where several people died near Port St. Lucie.

Fox News Digital has reached out to FEMA and its DHS agency for comment.

Elizabeth Elkind of Fox News contributed to this report.