Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday that Congress will do “whatever it takes to meet the needs of the people” after Hurricane Helene and Milton, but that it would be “premature” to return to Washington now before assessing how much disaster relief is needed.
“What happens after every storm is that the states have to assess and calculate the actual needs, and then present that request to Congress,” Johnson said during an interview with host Margaret Brennan on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “Once that is done, Congress will convene and we will address those needs in a bipartisan manner. We will provide the additional resources.”
“But it would be premature to call everyone back now because these storms are so large in size and magnitude that it will take some time to make those calculations,” the Louisiana Republican added.
Johnson said money has already been allocated to storm victims to meet their immediate needs and that as of this morning, two percent of that money had been distributed. But he said if Congress were to release additional funds to rebuild and repay the area, it would require more calculations first. He added that Congress approved $20 billion in FEMA funding the day before Helene struck.
Congress is not currently scheduled to meet again until after the elections.
Later in the same program, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Congress will have to come back to fund FEMA, but right now there is enough money for individuals affected by the hurricanes. But he encouraged Congress to return, especially as more storms could be on the way.
“FEMA has the money to meet the immediate needs of individuals affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, but we need Congress to act quickly to fund FEMA and specifically its Disaster Relief Fund, because it hurricane season is not over yet,” Mayorkas said.
Johnson also said the Biden administration must move faster to get current funds to hurricane victims.
“People are hurting and I’ve been on the ground in the worst hit disaster areas, Florida and North Carolina, they really need the help,” Johnson said.
Mayorkas pushed back on claims of delays, saying the Biden administration has already distributed more than $470 million in emergency aid to hurricane victims as it tries to determine who needs help.
“Assessing the damage from Hurricane Milton, which is of historic strength, and which also spawned about 27 different tornadoes, so we don’t know the impact,” Mayorkas said. “We don’t know what will come tomorrow. Whether it’s another hurricane, a tornado, a fire, an earthquake.”
He added: “We have to be ready, and it is not good government to depend on a day-to-day existence instead of appropriate planning.”
