Across the U.S., electric cooperatives are supporting a new bipartisan bill that would streamline the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and speed up delivery of crucial disaster relief funds to electric co-ops hit hard by hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes and other natural disasters.
The Fixing Emergency Management for Americans Act of 2025 would keep in place FEMA’s essential Public Assistance program, which provides money to co-ops to restore power and rebuild their systems after natural disasters. Without those funds, rebuilding would take much longer and costs would increase sharply for rural communities.
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), the national trade association representing more than 900 co-ops, and its member co-ops have been strong advocates for improving FEMA while keeping the agency intact. The FEMA Act would greatly reduce the amount of time it takes for co-ops to receive reimbursements from the agency.
Specifically, it would direct the FEMA administrator to reimburse co-ops for emergency work no later than 120 days after a request is submitted. The president would first need to determine that at least 90% of estimated costs are eligible for reimbursement, said Will Mitchell, an NRECA legislative affairs director who lobbies Congress on FEMA issues.
For longer-term projects to rebuild or replace infrastructure, the bill would require FEMA to review within 90 days a co-op’s cost estimate of the work that needs to be done, Mitchell said. After that, the agency would have 30 days to disburse the funds for the project.
“That would be a huge change in the timeline,” Mitchell said. “Right now, most co-ops are waiting years for reimbursement.”
Another major improvement is that co-ops would be allowed to build stronger, more resilient systems in the aftermath of disasters rather than being forced by the agency to build everything back exactly as it was before.
The legislation would remove FEMA from the Department of Homeland Security and return it to its former status as an independent agency that reports directly to the president. The bill would also make FEMA a stronger, more responsive agency and help strengthen rural resilience, protect taxpayer dollars and ensure essential services are restored as quickly as possible after a natural disaster.
Sponsors from the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee introduced the legislation on July 23 — the day the House adjourned for its summer recess. The committee is expected to have hearings on the bill after Congress returns to the nation’s capital in September.
The panel will then vote on whether to send it to the full House for consideration. If passed by the House, the legislation would still need to be approved by the Senate and signed into law by President Donald Trump.
FEMA is a crucial partner for electric co-ops in efforts to restore power after disaster strikes.As the FEMA Act of 2025 moves through the legislative process, NRECA and electric cooperative leaders will keep working to improve upon it for co-ops and the local communities they serve.
