The End of FEMA?

The U.S. Senate panel investigating the government's failures during and after Hurricane Katrina released their report yesterday. The panel was led by Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Joseph Lieberman (D-Connecticut). It called for the complete dissolution of FEMA, which they said is flawed beyond repair. The inquiry suggests creating a new, stronger authority called the National Preparedness and Response Authority, which would have stronger powers but would remain within the Homeland Security Department. The report also calls for a clear delineation of who is in charge of maintaining New Orleans levees, which is vitally important. The title of the report says it all, "Hurricane Katrina: A Nation Still Unprepared."

Hurricane season is too close to the beginning for any bureaucratic shakeup to have a real effect. Therefore, the nation is still stuck with the bumbling FEMA for this season. However, in the long run an overhaul is definitely necessary. FEMA is a bureaucratic mess and it needs to be remade in an improved form. As Senator Collins said, "that doesn't mean that we should continue in the long term to operate with a system that's failed, that is so clearly flawed." These reforms, however, must be legitimate if they are to have any real effect. They must create a new culture of leadership, effective coordination, and accountability if this effort is to be more than just a name-change.