Rep. Thompson, Carter, Titus, Kennedy Announce Disaster Equity and Building Resilience Caucus for the 119th Congress

Washington, D.C. – Today, Reps. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Troy A. Carter, Sr. (D-LA), Dina Titus (D-NV), and Tim Kennedy (D-NY) announced the leadership and membership of the Congressional Disaster Equity and Building Resilience Caucus for the 119^th Congress. The Caucus, which was created two years ago, promotes the benefits of resilience and the need for equity in the country’s disaster preparedness and response infrastructure. Research has shown that racial minorities, rural areas, low-income communities, Tribes, individuals with disabilities, seniors, and children are all more likely to experience the most devastating impacts of disasters.

Reps. Thompson, Carter, Titus, and Kennedy will serve together as co-Chairs of the Caucus. They, along with Caucus members, aim to use the Caucus to advance conversations about how Congress can make disaster outcomes more equitable and strengthen communities. Since it was formed in 2023, the Caucus has held events with senior officials from the Biden White House and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and convened panels with key stakeholders to address urgent challenges and drive actionable solutions.

“As natural disasters become more severe and frequent, we’ve seen evidence showing that low-income communities and communities of color get left behind after disasters strike. That is inexcusable and unsustainable – and it’s something we must all address,” said Rep. Bennie G. Thompson. “Whether you can fully recover after a disaster should not depend on your background or where you live. Having frank discussions with my colleagues and disaster recovery experts on how we can do better is even more critical today as we see the Trump administration not only calling for the elimination of FEMA, but seemingly working around the clock to erase any progress that has been made in recent years to reduce systemic barriers to recovery. The Federal government must do better.”

“Storms don’t discriminate, and disaster relief shouldn’t either. Yet there have been long-standing inequities in disaster relief, especially for low-income, rural, and other minority communities. Louisiana knows this all too well, particularly as we prepare to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. I’m proud to co-chair the Congressional Disaster Equity and Building Resilience Caucus, which will advocate for disaster preparedness and recovery that better serves everyone. I look forward to working with the Caucus on how we better prepare for and recover from natural disasters,” said Rep. Troy A. Carter, Sr.

“As the frequency and severity of natural disasters increase, it is more important than ever to ensure that every community has access to the tools it needs to prepare and recover from extreme weather events. Disasters wreak havoc on red states and blue states across the country. As a senior member of the House subcommittee overseeing emergency management and as the Co-Chair for the Disaster Equity and Building Resilience Caucus, I’ve worked with FEMA and my Congressional colleagues to push for equitable disaster relief and resilience across the board. Together we can work to close the recovery gap and help every affected community and family rebuild,” said Rep. Dina Titus.

“Western New Yorkers know all too well the disproportionate impacts of extreme weather on our most vulnerable communities,” said Rep. Tim Kennedy. “We saw this firsthand during Winter Storm Elliott, a historic blizzard in December 2022 that took the lives of 47 individuals in my community. As these incidents become more frequent and more severe, we must ensure equity is at the forefront of the fight to improve disaster response, harden infrastructure, and build more resilient communities. I look forward to engaging in productive conversations as Co-Chair of the Disaster Equity and Building Resilience Caucus about the importance of parity in federal disaster assistance for extreme cold weather. I want to thank Ranking Member Thompson for his continuous and steadfast leadership in Congress to make disaster recovery and response more equitable.”

In recent years, the Committee on Homeland Security held hearings on the issue of equity in disaster preparedness. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) also produced a report on disaster equity and barriers to recovery. Both led to legislation authored by Rep. Bennie G. Thompson to address systemic inequities in the Federal government’s response to disasters and how it distributes assistance. The Biden administration prioritized addressing equity in emergency management; however, those initiatives seem to have been canceled, with all evidence of them removed from White House and FEMA websites.  

Additional Caucus members include Reps. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), Al Green (D- TX), Yvette Clarke (D-NY), Terri Sewell (D-AL), Eric Swalwell (D-CA), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Lou Correa (D-CA), Ritchie Torres (D-NY), Robert Garcia (D-CA), Dan Goldman (D-NY), Glenn Ivey (D-MD), Seth Magaziner (D-RI), Rob Menendez (D-NJ), Kevin Mullin (D-CA), Delia Ramirez (D-IL), Shri Thanedar (D-MI), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), Pablo Hernández (D-PR), Julie Johnson (D-TX), LaMonica Mclver (D-NJ), Nellie Pou (D-NJ).