FORT MYERS, Fla. — As President Donald Trump's administration considers gutting the the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Hurricane Ian survivors headed to Washington, D.C. to fight for the agency's future.
The Lee County Disaster Survivors Association is a self-described grassroots organization that advocates for disaster relief. Founder Tara Boyd said she lived on Fort Myers Beach - until Hurricane Ian flooded her home.
Boyd then applied for FEMA aid, but said she was denied. Boyd now lives in a camper provided by the state-run Unite Florida program.
It's a familiar story for many people in the group. Several Survivors Association members told FOX 4 they still live in Unite Florida trailers, three years after Hurricane Ian. They were all denied FEMA reimbursements.
A Scripps News investigation discovered that FEMA denied applications filed by hundreds of thousands of Floridians after Hurricane Ian, including from many families who qualified for assistance.
It’s a pattern of frustration with FEMA that is familiar to many homeowners recovering from other major disasters over the years, the Scripps News investigation found.
"Everyone deserves a full and fair recovery, especially after, you know, surviving a natural disaster," Boyd said. "After losing everything that you have, and then trying to navigate through that system, it's not okay."
Even so, the group doesn't want to see FEMA go away. In June, President Donald Trump said he planned to eliminate the agency, shifting responsibility to the states. FEMA distributes billions of dollars in federal disaster aid and helps coordinate disaster response.
Boyd said that states are not equipped to replace FEMA. In 2023 and 2024, hurricanes, tropical storms, and flooding caused more than $38.85 billion in damage here in Florida. That's according to the Florida Policy Institute.
Despite historic federal funding, the policy said Florida still faces $14.8 billion in documented unmet recovery needs.
“We don’t believe it should be taken away," Boyd said. "What we do believe is it needs to be restructured.”
Administration officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem have criticized the agency as inefficient and ineffective. Trump established a FEMA Review Council to develop recommendations for the agency.
CNN reported the council planned to recommended a sweeping overhaul of the agency, including cutting its workforce in half and raise the threshold for states to receive disaster aid.
The council was supposed to vote on the recommendations last Thursday. But the White House reportedly canceled the meeting because it had not been fully briefed.
The Lee County group said it will be in Washington with 80 other disaster survivors until Tuesday. It plans to meet with the office of Rep. Byron Donalds, who represents a large chunk of Southwest Florida.
The Naples Republican proposed legislation to remove FEMA from the Department of Homeland Security and restore it as an independent, cabinet-level agency.
FOX 4's Andrew Shipley spoke with Donalds about the proposal.
Boyd said the group will also meet with the office of Sen. Rick Scott.
“You know, you would think that we could depend on our government to kind of pick us up, hold us up, and provide the relief," Boyd said. "However, going through that system is awful challenging. Only to be denied.”
