Inside the Katrina Declaration: Why FEMA staff risked their jobs to warn of disaster

Staff suspended following letter warning of disaster risks

The Guardian and Stand Up for Science have reported that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has placed some employees on leave after they signed a public letter of dissent against cuts and restructuring under the Trump administration.

According to The Guardian, the letter, known as the Katrina Declaration, warns that the United States faces renewed risk of a major disaster comparable to Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Stand Up for Science, the advocacy group that published the letter, said that among those affected are staff involved in recent relief work in Kerr County, Texas, where floods last month caused deaths and widespread damage.

The organisation confirmed that at least two signatories received notices placing them on paid leave and requiring them to check in daily while their status remains under review.

The Washington Post was the first to report that FEMA staff had been put on leave, though the exact number affected remains unclear.

Content of the Katrina Declaration

Stand Up for Science published the Katrina Declaration, signed by more than 180 current and former FEMA staff.

The group said the declaration sets out six statements of opposition to current FEMA policies and requests action from Congress to protect the agency’s capacity.

Signatories highlighted concerns about restrictions on expenditure approval, the reassignment of staff to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the lack of a qualified administrator, and cuts to mitigation and training programmes.

They also criticised the removal of climate change references from FEMA documents and reductions in the disaster workforce.

The petition calls for FEMA to be established as an independent cabinet-level agency and for safeguards to protect staff from political interference.

Reactions from named staff

Jennifer Forester, a FEMA analyst placed on leave, said: “Dismantling the agency piecemeal while threatening to do so entirely will render such a tragedy, once again, inevitable.

“After Katrina, without the local and state organizations getting the federal funding and personnel they needed to perform rescue and relief operations, people died and suffered horribly on the ground.

“Although the storm was inevitable and the damage it caused was attributable to local failures, the response to it was absolutely preventable at the federal level, and the government still has the power to prevent future death and suffering with proper staff and funding.”

Jeremy Edwards, a former spokesperson for FEMA and the White House under President Joe Biden, signed the letter.

He said: “The agency had been completely unprepared for Katrina because of where they were positioned within the federal government at the time.

“As an example, PKEMRA required FEMA to be led by someone with disaster management experience. This administration failed that test.

“It requires that the secretary of homeland security not reduce the capacity or ability of the agency. They failed that test.

“And it requires them to provide training and preparedness measures for state and local partners, and they’ve rolled back a lot of those trainings, or put them on pause.”

Advocacy group response

A Stand Up for Science spokesperson said: “This situation is developing, but this decision underscores the many issues these public servants described in their declaration and their bravery in standing up for Americans in need.

“Stand Up for Science is proud to have hosted their Katrina Declaration and we stand by the FEMA 36.”

The group said that while it could not confirm the number of employees placed on leave, “it seems likely they’ve retaliated against all public signers”.

It also criticised a statement issued by a FEMA spokesperson describing dissenters as “bureaucrats who presided over decades of inefficiency”.

The advocacy group said this was “an insult to anyone working at FEMA, the agency directly responsive to rapidly intensifying and changing circumstances”.

Broader concerns about agency leadership

According to The Guardian, signatories raised concerns about the leadership of acting administrator David Richardson, including a reported comment in which he admitted he “did not know the United States had hurricanes”, later described by an agency spokesperson as a joke.

Former analyst Annie Ginzkey, another signatory, said: “The people put in charge do not have the emergency management experience to effectively lead this agency.

“I expect there to be a catastrophic disaster that FEMA is not able to adequately respond to because of the cuts, and the Trump administration will use the failure as an excuse to further cut or close the agency.”

Other staff said they feared retaliation, citing lie detector tests reportedly administered by the Department of Homeland Security in response to leaks.

Edwards said: “I have known people who were unceremoniously fired on the spot after failing polygraph tests.

“They refute the results, mind you, and these aren’t legitimate exercises, but they were walked out of the building.

“The fact that the people who signed on to this letter saw all that happening, knew that that very same thing could happen to them, and they still took the risk because they thought it was important to put their name on this thing, I think speaks to an immense amount of courage on behalf of these people.”

Federal response and future outlook

In June 2025, President Trump said he intended to close FEMA after the current hurricane season, though Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem later stated that the plan was to overhaul the agency, not eliminate it.

FEMA has not responded directly to questions about how many employees have been placed on leave in connection with the dissent letter.

The Guardian reported that some employees remain sceptical about the potential impact of the letter, with at least one anonymous staff member saying it carried “not a lot of upside” for those still inside the agency.

Edwards said: “Despite the risks, those who signed did so because they thought it was important to put their name on this thing.

“I think that speaks to an immense amount of courage on behalf of these people.”

Relevance for fire and safety professionals

The situation at FEMA highlights how changes in disaster management policy and staffing can directly affect emergency preparedness at local, state and national levels.

Cuts to mitigation programmes and training initiatives may limit the support available to firefighters, rescue teams and other first responders during future disasters.

The suspension of experienced staff also has implications for knowledge transfer, resource allocation and coordination during emergencies.

For professionals in fire and safety sectors, these developments show the importance of monitoring federal agency policies that influence disaster readiness and inter-agency collaboration.

FEMA employees placed on leave after dissent letter: Summary

The Guardian reported that FEMA has placed some employees on leave after they signed a public dissent letter.

Stand Up for Science published the letter, known as the Katrina Declaration, on Monday.

More than 180 current and former FEMA staff signed the declaration.

The letter warns that cuts and restructuring reduce FEMA’s ability to respond to disasters.

It outlines six statements of opposition to current policies.

Concerns include lack of a qualified administrator, cuts to mitigation programmes and staff reassignment.

At least two signatories have received formal notices placing them on paid leave.

The Washington Post first reported on staff being placed on leave.

FEMA has not confirmed how many employees are affected.

Stand Up for Science said the group stands by the employees who signed the letter.

Jennifer Forester and Jeremy Edwards, both former or current FEMA officials, were among those quoted.

The letter calls on Congress to establish FEMA as a cabinet-level agency.

It also requests safeguards against political interference in the agency’s work.

President Trump previously said he wanted to close FEMA after hurricane season.

Secretary Kristi Noem later stated that the agency would be overhauled instead.

The dissent follows earlier staff protests at other federal agencies.