Biden-era FEMA workers felt ‘unsafe’ at Trump supporters’ homes, tracked disaster survivors’ political beliefs across US: DHS

The investigation carried out by the DHS during FEMA’s response to Hurricane Milton in 2024, violated the Privacy Act of 1974 "by collecting and maintaining information about individuals’ political beliefs," specifically about individuals’ support for Trump. DHS wrote that "during the course of this investigation, we have uncovered evidence that this also occurred during other disasters across the nation."

One of the provisions of the Privacy Act "prohibits agencies from maintaining records describing how any individual exercises their rights guaranteed by the First Amendment, unless one of the three exceptions applies," the report stated. "In this case, none of the exceptions were relevant or applicable to FEMA."

Amid recovery efforts from 2024’s Hurricane Milton, reports came out showing that a FEMA supervisor had instructed workers to avoid homes with Trump campaign signs. The DHS said that at least 20 homes did not receive initial disaster assistance. A complaint was made by an employee to FEMA’s Office of Professional Responsibility regarding the reports, and a misconduct investigation was carried out.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell testified before a House subcommittee on allegations of political bias in FEMA’s response to 2024’s Hurricanes Milton and Helene, confirming that the crew lead was terminated and saying that the actions were a "clear violation of FEMA’s core principles and values."

The DHS wrote that its review of data from a tool FEMA canvassers use to collect data on disaster survivors "shows that several canvassers in different disasters and different states collected information of the same nature as the Hurricane Milton canvassers."

"Screenshots of FEMA’s tool that collects and maintains information for the purpose of disaster survivor assistance further evidenced that FEMA collected personal information about firearm support and individuals’ statements about political matters. The screenshots included numerous entries in Hurricane Milton, for example, that showed that FEMA bypassed homes that displayed signage for then-presidential candidate Donald Trump."

The review found a total of 68 instances of impermissible and potentially impermissible information collection in 2024 between contractors and FEMA employees, 9 instances in 2023, 22 instances in 2022, and 3 instances in 2021. The keyword flagged the most over the Biden administration was "gun signage," with 72 instances.

The screenshots and data viewed by the DHS showed that FEMA canvassers "bypassed homes specifically noting information related to an individual’s exercise of First Amendment rights. In several instances, canvassers’ records indicate that canvassers skipped homes and left no disaster assistance flyers, citing the First Amendment-protected activity."

Among the notes made by employees was one in June of 2024 in Texas that stated "pro gun sign," another the same month in Kentucky that stated "angry political rant," an October 2021 one that stated, "Homeowner had sign stated … this is trump country," and November 2024, which stated "there was a political flyer so I didn’t leave a FEMA brochure."

One September 2021 note on a Pennsylvania residence read, "…a lot of explicit political flags, posters, etc. 'F*ck Joe Biden' 'MAGA 2024' 'Joe Biden Sucks' 'TRUMP 2024'. We do not recommend anyone visiting this location."

The report noted that FEMA's guidance instructs personnel to leave if they feel "unsafe." The report stated, "In the absence of clear guidance, the canvasser’s subjective determination of what constitutes a hostile or unsafe situation and the response to that will likely result in unequal service delivery and potentially jeopardize the physical safety of both the canvassers and the disaster survivors they aim to assist."

The DHS was "unable to find evidence of a broader directive from FEMA leadership to bypass homes based on political affiliation," but also found that the agency "A has no guidance to address the issues involved in this investigation."

"This lack of guidance leaves significant questions up to the individual canvasser’s judgment, which increases the likelihood of collecting impermissible information and unfair decision-making. From a privacy perspective, FEMA’s failure to address these issues directly in policy, guidance, or training increases the risk that FEMA personnel are susceptible to future violations of the Privacy Act of 1974 as FEMA canvassers will continue to be unaware of what personal information is relevant and necessary to disaster assistance."

The DHS concluded, "By addressing these violations and implementing corrective actions, FEMA can restore public trust and demonstrate its commitment to providing equitable disaster relief to all citizens, thereby upholding the principles of fairness and impartiality that are fundamental to its mission."

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement, "The federal government was withholding aid against Americans in crisis based on their political beliefs—this should horrify every American, regardless of political persuasion. For years, FEMA employees under the Biden Administration intentionally delayed much-needed aid to Americans suffering from natural disasters on purely political grounds. They deliberately avoided houses displaying support for President Trump and the Second Amendment, illegally collected and stored information about survivors’ political beliefs, and failed to report their malicious behavior. We will not let this stand."