The federal agency ostensibly charged with helping Americans after disasters, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, was tasked by Congress with providing services for migrants — potentially diverting the agency’s attention away from its primary task and raising serious questions about its priorities. 

FEMA is coming under scrutiny following reports that it dispersed $640 million for migrant services in fiscal year 2024 through the “Shelter and Services Program” that it administers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Congress earlier this year directed the CBP to transfer $650 million to FEMA “to support sheltering and related activities provided by non-Federal entities, in support of relieving overcrowding in short-term holding facilities” of CBP. 

Some $640.9 million of the $650 million was to be used for resources and services for migrants including shelter costs, food, transportation, medical care, personal hygiene, clothing, and translation services. The remaining $9.1 million went toward administrative costs.

With hundreds of Americans dead and missing across the Southeast as a result of flooding from Hurricane Helene — the death toll so far has now passed 200 people — questions are mounting about the federal government’s spending priorities, given that FEMA doesn’t have enough funds to make it through the hurricane season. 

“We are meeting the immediate needs with the money that we have,” the secretary of Homeland Security — which oversees FEMA — Alejandro Mayorkas, said on Wednesday. “We are expecting another hurricane hitting — we do not have the funds, FEMA does not have the funds, to make it through the season.”

Critics of the administration have been quick to lambast FEMA’s strategic priorities, which include “equity” and “climate resilience” as its top goals even as Hurricane Helene has left millions of Americans displaced from their homes and without power for days.

“Over the last 4 years the Biden-Harris admin has steadily transformed FEMA — the agency responsible for responding to natural disasters like Hurricane Helene — into an illegal alien resettlement agency that emphasizes DEI over public safety,” America First Legal wrote on X, adding that “the Biden-Harris FEMA views disaster response as an opportunity to propel their radical ‘equity’ agenda and further resettle and support millions of illegal aliens within the U.S.“

FEMA’s “strategic plan” on its website puts instilling “equity” as its top goal. FEMA says, of its three main goals, the first is to “Instill equity as a foundation of emergency management” and its second goal is to “lead whole of community in climate resilience.” FEMA’s third and last listed goal is to “promote and sustain a ready FEMA and prepared nation.” 

“FEMA has run out of money for the rest of hurricane season because Kamala Harris used the funds for free giveaways to illegal immigrants,” the Trump campaign’s national press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, tells the Sun. “This is inexcusable and yet another example of Kamala Harris putting Americans LAST!”

Other lawmakers and analysts are criticizing the federal government for apparently prioritizing other countries and migrants over the people across the Southeast most affected by Hurricane Helene. 

“Let’s check in on our government: Biden announced a new $2.4B aid package to Ukraine last week while Kamala announced today that victims of Hurricane Helene will get a mere $750,” a Republican strategist, Greg Price, wrote on X. “Oh, and FEMA doesn’t have enough money to make it through hurricane season yet spent $640M on illegal aliens.” 

“This is easy,” Texas’s governor, Greg Abbott, said. “Mayorkas and FEMA — immediately stop spending money on illegal immigration resettlement and redirect those funds to areas hit by the hurricane. Put Americans first.”

A spokesman for DHS described the allegation from Mr. Abbott and others that disaster-stricken Americans are being shortchanged because of spending on migrants as “completely false.”

“As Secretary Mayorkas said, FEMA has the necessary resources to meet the immediate needs associated with Hurricane Helene and other disasters,” the spokesman said. “The Shelter and Services Program (SSP) is a completely separate, appropriated grant program that was authorized and funded by Congress and is not associated in any way with FEMA’s disaster-related authorities or funding streams.”

The Sun has reached out to the Harris campaign for comment.