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I'm going to a FEMA meeting this afternoon as part of the local government delegation. FEMA is coming in to 'help' our town coordinate volunteer efforts in the case of another flood or whatever. They have already designated a Citizen Superior to head up the thing and he has gotten his own committee together to run it. The local gov is invited, but not sure what our role is supposed to be. Questions for Freepers - Does anyone have priors with this FEMA program? Are there any particular things I should ask? Should I be as suspicious as I am?...

Project Shield was supposed to make citizens safer. But in the end, the $45-million Homeland Security program more resembled a disaster, wasting taxpayers’ dollars and failing to make a single citizen more secure. The failed Cook County initiative was replete with equipment that failed to work, missing records and untrained first responders according to a report by the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The report, to be released Monday but obtained by The Sun-Times and NBC5 News, found “millions of tax dollars may have been wasted.”

In his latest signing statement Obama said: "My administration will not authorize the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens," Obama said in the signing statement. "Indeed, I believe that doing so would break with our most important traditions and values as a nation." Now why would he even need to say that were it not possible? Does his signing statement make you feel safer? It ought not. After all, it was Obama who said unequivocally that he would not use signing statements to "get his way." [VIDEO AT SITE] Obviously it is now possible for Obama to hold...

Of all the rumors flying around on the internet, one just refuses to die, and it concerns America's FEMA camps. In a nutshell, there seems to be a solicitation of bids occurring for the staffing of FEMA camps within 72 hours of implementation by an order from either Homeland Security or the president. This situation begs to be investigated, with special consideration paid to the motives of the present administration. I went to the source, the FedBizOpps.gov, and searched for the solicitation number HSFEHQ-10-R-0027, titled National Responder Support Camp. A search of the history of the amendments to this Solicitation...

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — When the Federal Emergency Management Agency mailed out 83,000 debt notices this year to victims of Hurricane Katrina and other 2005 storms, one of the letters showed up in David Bellinger's mailbox. Bellinger, who is blind, needed a friend to read it and break the news that FEMA wants him to pay back more than $3,200 in federal aid he received after Katrina.

<p>Oath Keepers has learned that federal agents recently visited a Later Day Saints (Mormon) Church food storage cannery in Tennessee, demanding customer lists, wanting to know the identity of Americans who are purchasing food storage from the Mormons.</p> <p>“A fellow veteran contacted me concerning a new and disturbing development. He had been utilizing a Mormon cannery near his home to purchase bulk food supplies. The man that manages the facility related to him that federal agents had visited the facility and demanded a list of individuals that had been purchasing bulk food. The manager informed the agents that the facility kept no such records and that all transactions were conducted on a cash-and-carry basis. The agents pressed for any record of personal checks, credit card transactions, etc., but the manager could provide no such record. The agents appeared to become very agitated and after several minutes of questioning finally left with no information. I contacted the manager and personally confirmed this information.</p>

Like many other ham operators, I have been involved in the RACES (Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service) aspect of the hobby for some time. RACES teams generally work with county emergency management agencies and support emergency communications. All of this, of course, rolls up to our corrupt FEMA/DHS bureaucracy and a lot of the ham physical resources are supported by FEMA grant money, strings attached. While the head is rotten, many of the local agencies are pretty good to work with while some aren't. I am seeing a number of hams expressing discontent with, or curtailing their level of activity...

Okay everyone...approaching 2:00pm Eastern...ready for the "Big EAS Test"?

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will conduct the first nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS). The nationwide test will occur on Wednesday, November 9 at 2 p.m. eastern standard time and may last up to three and a half minutes. The EAS is a national alert and warning system established to enable the President of the United States to address the American public during emergencies. NOAA's National Weather Service, governors and state and local emergency authorities also use parts of the system to...

Federal entitlements, which comprise 60% of the budget, have been correctly identified as the root cause of our growing annual deficit. We certainly need to enact significant reforms of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. However, in order to achieve some level of fiscal integrity, there is an equally important change that we must all accept – just saying no. This became apparent when Congress went home for their August break without an agreement on an FAA funding bill – leaving 4,000 federal employees out of work for 13 days. The center of this dispute – and a pristine illustration of...

FEMA officials said pet owners should keep a pet emergency supply kit, which should include at least a three-day supply of food in an airtight, waterproof container, drinking water, bowls for the food and water, current photos of you and your pets together, physical descriptions of each pet, medication, vaccination records and first aid pet supplies.

A government shutdown has been avoided as Congress reached a deal on the latest contentious budget issue: financing federal disaster aid. As the New York Times reported: “The Senate reached a bipartisan spending agreement on Monday to avert a government shutdown, sidestepping a bitter impasse over disaster financing after federal authorities said they could most likely squeak through the rest of this week with the $114 million they had on hand.” There is no guarantee that a “bitter impasse” would have resulted in reforming disaster aid, but it’s almost certain that it won’t happen without any serious debate. That’s too...

WASHINGTON -- The Senate voted Monday night to send a temporary spending bill to the House to avoid a government shutdown, Democrats and Republicans appeared to have reached a final-hour resolution to an impasse over disaster aid. The vote in the Senate was 79 to 12 to fund the government through Nov. 18, giving the two sides more time to haggle over long-term spending levels. The Senate also approved an even shorter-term spending bill -- funding the government into next week -- by a voice vote to give the House time to reconvene and approve the followup legislation.<snip>"Senate Democrats have...

WASHINGTON (AP) - Ending weeks of political brinkmanship, Congress finessed a dispute over disaster aid Monday night and advanced legislation to avoid a partial government shutdown this weekend. The breakthrough came hours after the Federal Emergency Management Agency indicated it had enough money for disaster relief through Friday. That disclosure allowed lawmakers to jettison a $1 billion replenishment that had been included in the measure—and to crack the gridlock it had caused. Senate passage of the legislation was expected within hours. There was no immediate comment from Republican leaders in the House, although their agreement seemed a formality. The events...

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain — fresh off a surprise victory in the Florida straw poll that has re-energized his campaign — broke with House Republicans on Monday and urged Congress to fund the Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster-relief program now, regardless of whether they can tie budget offsets to the bill. "I would make sure that FEMA got the money it needed, and if I had to go find the offsets later, go find it later. Stop playing with people's tragedies — these are real people we’re talking about," Cain said on CNN. Cain argued that keeping the disaster...

With near permanent brinksmanship the new normal, Congress headed into votes Friday to try to avert a government shutdown that is slated to occur on Oct. 1 if a continuing resolution bill is not passed. The Senate has voted to reject the temporary spending bill passed by the House late last night. With near permanent brinksmanship the new normal, Congress headed into votes Friday to try to avert a government shutdown that is slated to occur on Oct. 1 if a continuing resolution bill is not passed. In a surprise late night victory Thursday, House Republican leaders narrowly passed a...

House Democrats took to the floor on Wednesday, characterizing a provision for disaster-relief in the GOP's short-term spending measure as “stingy” and a “disgrace.” Democrats oppose the provision for $3.7 billion in disaster relief because Republicans have offset the funds by cutting from a fuel-efficiency program, the Department of Energy’s Advanced Vehicle Manufacturing Loan Program. Democrats say they won't support the bill because the cuts will hurt job creation. In a floor speech, Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) deemed the Republican’s FEMA bill “frugal and cheap.” Criticizing the bill for its offsets from the DOE program, Ellison said the bill “is...

Funding crisis: Senate blocks House bill By: Jake Sherman and Manu Raju September 23, 2011 08:56 AM EDT Senate Democrats on Friday blocked a House Republican stopgap budget plan, intensifying a bitter impasse that threatens to bring government operations to a halt in a matter of days. On a 59-36 vote, the Senate voted to table the House plan, just the latest escalation in a government spending crisis that has dominated Capitol Hill this year. The vote now threatens to derail next week’s congressional recess, dry up federal funding for the Federal Emergency Management Agency by early next week and...

An already contentious debate over funding the government past September 30 intensified Thursday as Republicans amended their bill to be more amenable to GOP lawmakers and Democrats pledged to oppose it. In what is at latest government shutdown threat this year, without action by the start of the new fiscal year, all but the most essential government services will cease on October 1 until a new agreement is reached. House Republicans passed a continuing resolution early Friday morning on a mostly partly-line vote, though the bill drew immediate criticism from Senate Democrats over its spending cut offsets for new federal...

These Democrats are just plain idiots: Congress must pass a stopgap spending bill by Sept. 30 to avert a government shutdown. Both the House and Senate are scheduled to be on recess next week, adding to the urgency of reaching an agreement by the weekend. Democrats opposed the GOP bill en masse because it partially offsets $3.65 billion in funding for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) with a $1.5 billion cut to a separate Department of Energy manufacturing loan program. “The bill the House will vote on tonight is not an honest effort at compromise. It fails to...

Two Texas Republicans joined the Democratic contingent tonight in shooting down a government spending measure in the House that would have funded the government through mid-November. The bill also included $3.6 billion in federal emergency aid for ravaged areas around the U.S., including the 52 Texas counties President Obama declared as disaster areas recently. The measure was an interim solution that would have taken effect Sept. 30 after the current funding bill, which was passed in April, expires. At issue was the additional billions in emergency funding, which Sen. Harry Reid attached to the Senate version of the bill before...

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Tuesday there is a chance that the government could shutter at the end of this month.

 Criticizing House Republicans for the disaster relief provisions in their budget bill, Reid told reporters, "We're not going to cave on this."

 Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday confidently predicted the two sides will come together by Thursday night: "There wil not be a government shutdown." Reid, however, said, "I'm not that sure" there won't be a shutdown. He added, "I am not as certain as McConnell." At issue is increased funding for the Federal...

WASHINGTON (September 9) – Congressman Spencer Bachus (AL-6) today said he is outraged by an “indefensible” regulation that could require the demolition of storm shelters built to protect school children in Alabama after the deadly tornadoes of April 27. In a letter to President Obama, Bachus said that he will introduce legislation to prohibit the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from tearing down storm shelters that were constructed to accompany portable classrooms. In the meantime, Congressman Bachus is asking the President to direct FEMA to suspend a policy that one school administrator has flatly stated “stinks.” “It makes no sense...

Reporting from Bastrop, Texas, and Los Angeles— Out-of-control wildfires — among the worst in state history — leaped across Texas' parched midsection, destroying 1,000 homes and killing four as firefighters called for more resources and the governor, a Republican presidential hopeful who's made his mark blasting federal spending, asked Washington for help. Winds were expected to abate, but only slightly, and the dry conditions will persist for days. Gov. Rick Perry complained about the slow pace of assistance from Washington and Ft. Hood as Federal Emergency Management Agency officials arrived in Bastrop, where 600 houses were burned, to survey fire...

A creek running toward the Hudson River became a river of destruction, sweeping away several businesses and hundreds of badly needed jobs in Orange County, CBS 2′s Lou Young reports. The flood waters rushed into a creek-side complex of businesses in Cornwall, New York reducing it to rubble. “All the businesses that were down here have been wiped out,” said Bill Diamond. On one end of the scale is a candle-maker who picked through the mud for remnants of his livelihood. At the other end, a processed food wrapping firm that still has Welch’s fruit rolls that were on the...

Some federal money pledged to tornado-ravaged Joplin and other disaster sites is being diverted to help victims of Hurricane Irene. Bob Josephson of the Federal Emergency Management Agency said Monday that FEMA's Disaster Relief Fund is running low. He says individual aid to victims of the May 22 tornado that destroyed about one-third of Joplin will continue, but money for long-term public repair and rebuilding projects will be used for immediate disaster relief on the East Coast.

President Obama has received regular briefings about Hurricane Irene's impact. During the wet and windy weekend in Washington, senior advisors and cabinet officials have updated the president on the response and recovery effort taking place along the East Coast of the United States and in U.S. territories. Sunday morning, Obama convened a video teleconference in the White House Situation Room and plans to reconvene with his team managing the federal government's response Sunday night.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama says that while Tropical Storm Irene is weakening, it is still a threat to those communities in its path. Speaking from the Rose Garden, Obama says the public is still at risk of flooding and power outages.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry is considering his options after the federal government denied his request for emergency aid to help the state clean up from Tropical Storm Hermine, his spokeswoman said. President Barack Obama's administration rejected Perry's Sept. 20 request for a major disaster declaration and about $6.8 million in aid for 13 counties. Last month's storm killed eight people, including seven in Texas, and destroyed nearly 200 homes statewide, according to the governor's request letter. In his letter to Obama, Perry asked for about $2.9 million in federal funds to repair public property and infrastructure in Bell, Blanco, Cameron,...

Republican presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul (Texas) continued his criticisms of FEMA claiming that the agency’s approach is “deeply flawed.” "It’s a system of bureaucratic centralized economic planning that is a policy that is deeply flawed," Paul said on Fox News Sunday. He argued that FEMA had “one of the worst reputations for a bureaucracy ever.” “I want to transition us out of this dependency,” said Paul, arguing that people needed to abandon the idea that “FEMA will take care of us and everything will be OK.” While the administration is relying on FEMA to handle the response to Hurricane...

With less than $1 billion currently available for federal disaster assistance, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said Sunday it will temporarily suspend payments to rebuild roads, schools and other structures destroyed during spring tornadoes in Joplin, Mo. and southern states in order to pay for damage caused by Hurricane Irene.

WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama on Saturday personally led his government’s response to Hurricane Irene, marshalling top officials and visiting a disaster command center as the storm roared ashore. Obama greeted officials at the National Response Coordination Center (NRCC) set up at the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) headquarters in Washington, and then held a video conference with federal and state officials.

I know many people who would be prompted to flee at the prospect of an Obama speech. But were words from the World's Greatest Orator really responsible for Maryland residents threatened by Hurricane Irene to follow evacuation orders? Yes, according to Dem Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley. Clearly in full federal suck-up mode, O'Malley also spoke of the "new professionalism" at FEMA and even claimed that the economy was improving. View the video here.

We Are Totally Unprepared – Tremors Caused Mass Confusion, Panic Mac Slavo August 25th, 2011 SHTFplan.com The east coast earthquake(s) are just the latest example of how unprepared we are for an emergency or major disaster. Whether we’re talking about earthquakes, snow storms, hurricanes, floods, electrical outages or terrorist attacks, government officials, as well as individuals, have demonstrated time and again that we have a psychological inability to cope with high stress situations, a lack of foresight to stock emergency reserves, and have failed to prepare effective emergency response plans. Though we hardly felt any movement here in the city...

The earthquakes yesterday scared people along the East Coast, but the truly terrifying earthquake may strike the Midwest—and FEMA is preparing for it. Early in the morning of May 16, while most of America was being titillated and transfixed by the appearance in court of the then-suspect Dominique Strauss-Kahn, an urgent message was suddenly received at the headquarters of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in Washington, D.C Reports were streaming in of a catastrophic earthquake, magnitude 7.7, that had struck the Midwest near the town of Marked Tree, Ark. First reports were alarming: phenomenal property damage; casualty figures were...

Part 2 of a new series on how universal healthcare and guncontrol, two of liberalism's virtues lead to the slaughter of millions in the holocaust. In this episode you will learn about the first ever million mom march in Babi Yar in 1942 Ukraine. The march that was made possible by disarmament and as you'll see in the following episode, universal healthcare. Also staring Rosie O'Hitler

On August 8, President Barack Obama’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a disaster declaration for flooding in Utah. With that declaration, FEMA hit 158 declarations in 2011 and in so doing surpassed the 15-year record of 157 declarations, set in 1996 by President Bill Clinton’s FEMA, led by James Lee Witt. At this pace, FEMA will end the year with roughly 288 declarations, or almost twice the previous record. When FEMA issues a declaration, costs shift from the state where the declaration occurred to the federal government—which really means the states where the disaster did not occur are paying...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Insurance agents in states along the swollen Missouri River basin say federal officials are causing widespread confusion among property owners by pushing the sale of flood insurance policies that might not cover damage from the river flooding that began this month. The insurance companies say that officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which administers the national flood insurance program, are still urging private agents to sell the insurance even though the policies contain deadlines that appear to exclude the Missouri River flood damage. The federal officials explain that some of the damage along the...

Jefferson County resident Jonathan Stewart said he laughed in shock after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) claimed the house his family lost in the deadly April 27 twister was ‘not unsafe to live in’. Displaced families in tornado-ravaged Alabama are outraged after being denied federal aide to rebuild their flattened homes – due to ‘insufficient damage’. The devastating reality is the house is now a concrete slab surrounded by rubble. Mr Stewart told AL.com a FEMA inspector saw first-hand the Pleasant Grove residence he shared with his wife, Lisa, and their two children was ripped from the ground....

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will conduct the first nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS). The nationwide test will occur on Wednesday, November 9 at 2 p.m. eastern standard time and may last up to three and a half minutes. The EAS is a national alert and warning system established to enable the President of the United States to address the American public during emergencies. NOAA's National Weather Service, governors and state and local emergency authorities also use parts of the system to...

CORDOVA, Ala. (AP) — James Ruston's house was knocked off its foundation by tornadoes that barreled through town last month and is still uninhabitable. He thought help had finally arrived when a truck pulled up to his property with a mobile home from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Then he got the call: Single-wide mobile homes, like the FEMA one, are illegal in the city of Cordova. The city's refusal to let homeless residents occupy temporary housing provided by FEMA has sparked outrage in this central Alabama town of 2,000, with angry citizens filling a meeting last week and circulating...

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – After the raging Cedar River filled his home with 13 feet of water and ruined most of his possessions, Justin Van Fleet pleaded for help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to get back on his feet. Dead broke and living in a FEMA trailer following the 2008 flood, Van Fleet repeatedly submitted paperwork and made countless phone calls arguing his case. After seven months, the agency finally gave him more than $20,000, which he said gave him his life back and allowed him to move into a house. Then in March, a letter arrived from...

FEMA says no to Virginia. The Federal Emergency Management Agency denies Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell's request for federal assistance with the tornado destruction.(snip) The storm facts for April show the state was slammed by more than two dozen tornadoes. Killing 10 people, four of those were in Glade Spring. 212 homes were destroyed statewide and more than 1,000 were damaged.

By Doug Book, staff writer With the election approaching, Barack Hussein Obama has spared no effort in proclaiming his undying love of country (the United States, we are told) his veneration of the Constitution, his enduring belief in the power of prayer and the firm conviction that Americans have the right to keep and bear arms. But we proletarians who manifest such sentiments had best beware the Department of Homeland Security and its commandant, Big Sis Napolitano. For a proud assertion of patriotism by Americans who actually MEAN it may well succeed in marking one a Suspected Domestic Terrorist.

Robin Aaron thought it was the end. A ferocious storm ripped through Westmoreland County on Wednesday afternoon, leveling some houses and peeling roofs off others, tearing tops off trees and gouging the auditorium and athletic field at Hempfield Area Senior High School. As chunks of hail rained down, a churning funnel cloud screamed through Sewickley Township, leveling six homes on General Braddock Road. "I was outside taking my dogs in. I looked at the sky. It was getting real bad," Aaron said. "I grabbed my daughter and called to my son. ... We were all curled into a ball (in...

Terror threats appear to be on the rise as FEMA has rushed a $1 Billion order of dehydrated food in the event of attacks on domestic targets in the US. This is also coming on the heels of one of the largest terror drills performed by the US Navy on American soil, as Operation Solid Curtain is taking place this week. In an article Tuesday from the Beaufort Observer, many of the largest suppliers of dehydrated foods in the country are dropping their distributors and customers to dedicate their resources to supplying a billion dollar FEMA request and purchase.

Terror threats appear to be on the rise as FEMA has rushed a $1 Billion order of dehydrated food in the event of attacks on domestic targets in the US. This is also coming on the heels of one of the largest terror drills performed by the US Navy on American soil, as Operation Solid Curtain is taking place this week. In an article Tuesday from the Beaufort Observer, many of the largest suppliers of dehydrated foods in the country are dropping their distributors and customers to dedicate their resources to supplying a billion dollar FEMA request and purchase.

Folks, I have been in lurk-mode for about a year. However, the awful events in Christchurch NZ have prompted me to post this general update, for anyone in FReeperland who may be interested. By now, you will have heard the bare facts concerning the Christchurch earthquake, so I won't reiterate them here. The official death toll currently sits at just under 100, with expectations it may well rise to 300+. It is a terrible situation, one that New Zealand was never expecting. My beloved Guardian Angels NZ organization has 3 Lads in Christchurch. They are all OK, as are their...

Among the instructions from FEMA‘s guide to “Winter Storms and Extreme Cold,” found at www.ready.gov: “When a Winter Storm WARNING is issued: Stay indoors during the storm. If you must go outside, several layers of lightweight clothing will keep you warmer than a single heavy coat. Gloves (or mittens) and a hat will prevent loss of body heat. Cover your mouth to protect your lungs. Walk carefully on snowy, icy, walkways.”

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) procures and stores pre-packaged commercial meals to support readiness capability for immediate distribution to disaster survivors routinely. The purpose of this Request for Information is to identify sources of supply for meals in support of disaster relief efforts based on a catastrophic disaster event within the New Madrid Fault System for a survivor population of 7M to be utilized for the sustainment of life during a 10-day period of operations.