Federal Disaster Assistance: FEMA's Progress in Aiding Individuals with Disabilities Could Be Further Enhanced
Published: 2017-02-07T00:00:00

Fast Facts:

Highlights:
section_title: Why GAO Did This Study
paragraphs: In 2005, individuals with disabilities, individuals with limited English proficiency, and families with children were disproportionately affected by Hurricane Katrina. For example, some of those who had to abandon their wheelchairs could not evacuate because they were unable to wait in long lines for evacuation buses. The Post-Katrina Act required FEMA and other entities to take certain actions to assist these individuals, such as through the establishment of a Disability Coordinator within FEMA. GAO was asked to examine implementation of the Post-Katrina Act.
This report assesses the extent to which FEMA and other entities provide disaster services to individuals with disabilities, individuals with limited English proficiency, and children in need of family reunification. GAO examined federal, state, and local disaster assistance efforts for six major disasters that occurred from March 2014 through October 2015, where federal response and recovery efforts included assistance to the three target groups and that varied in location and type of disaster. GAO interviewed relevant officials, visited three of the six sites, and analyzed emergency operations plans and disaster summary reports.
section_title: What GAO Found
paragraphs: The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has taken steps to improve its disaster services for people with disabilities and its support to other entities, such as state and local governments. FEMA established the Office of Disability Integration and Coordination (ODIC) following enactment of the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (Post-Katrina Act) to lead the agency's efforts to promote inclusiveness in disaster planning, response, and recovery. However, there is no established procedure for FEMA Regional Administrators, who oversee disability integration staff in the regions, to involve ODIC in the activities of these staff. As a result, regions vary in the extent to which they consult with ODIC, which has led to a lack of clarity in regional disability integration staff roles, a lack of awareness of potentially underperforming staff, and inconsistent communication between the regions and headquarters. Federal internal control standards state that organizational structures should allow the organization's components to communicate information necessary to fulfill their respective responsibilities. Communication gaps between ODIC and the regions may prevent regional disability integration staff from effectively supporting state and local governments in meeting the needs of individuals with disabilities affected by disasters. ODIC also has not established goals for how many state and local emergency managers should take its key training on integrating the needs of individuals with disabilities into disaster planning. Nor has ODIC evaluated alternative methods to deliver the training more broadly, such as virtually in addition to classroom training. As a result, state and local emergency managers may be ill-prepared to provide effective disaster services to those with disabilities.
FEMA and other entities assist individuals with limited English proficiency by translating information on disaster assistance programs. FEMA provides information about its assistance programs using print materials in other languages, bilingual staff, and a helpline with translators for more than 50 languages. State, local, and voluntary organizations also disseminate information on health and safety information, such as evacuations and sheltering: In five of the six disasters GAO reviewed where translation was needed, these entities reported using a range of services, from bilingual staff to multilingual helplines.
FEMA worked with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) to establish a national call center designed to field calls with information about children separated from their families during disasters. NCMEC also maintains a registry that serves as a web-based repository created to collect this information. However, according to FEMA officials, no disasters since Hurricane Katrina have required national child reunification support. Nevertheless, FEMA continues to work with NCMEC on maintaining reunification resources, such as by funding the deployment of NCMEC personnel following disasters.
section_title: What GAO Recommends
paragraphs: FEMA should establish written procedures for involving ODIC in regional activities; set goals for the number of state and local emergency managers who will take a key training on disability integration; and evaluate alternative delivery methods for the training. FEMA concurred with all of the recommendations.

section_title: Letter
paragraphs: In a disaster, voluntary organizations and government agencies at the  federal, state, and local levels are each called on to provide assistance to  communities with differing characteristics and a range of needs. At the  federal level, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is  responsible for taking the lead in supporting nonfederal entities, including  state and local emergency managers that provide direct response and  recovery assistance to disaster survivors. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina  struck the Gulf Coast and caused more damage than any other natural  disaster in the history of the United States. The storm revealed  weaknesses in the nation’s ability to prepare for, respond to, and recover  from catastrophic disasters and demonstrated that a one-size-fits-all  model of emergency response and recovery may result in poor outcomes  for certain groups of people. Individuals with additional needs, such as  those with disabilities or limited English proficiency, as well as families  with children, were disproportionately affected by the storm. For example,  the National Council on Disability reported that people with mobility  disabilities who had to abandon wheelchairs could not evacuate from  affected areas because they were unable to wait in lines for evacuation  buses. In addition, no official system to reunite children with their families  existed at the time, and according to reports from Save the Children and  others, many of the more than 5,000 children reported as separated from  their families during the disaster remained so for several weeks or  months.
The Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (Post- Katrina Act) was enacted to address various shortcomings identified  following the hurricane. A number of provisions in the Post-Katrina Act  directed FEMA and other entities to make changes to assist specific  groups of individuals, such as establishing a center to help reunify  displaced children with their families. Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the first  large-scale disaster to test the provisions of the Post-Katrina Act, and the  191 major U.S. disasters declared between then and October 2016, have  highlighted continued challenges in emergency planning, response, and  recovery for certain groups, including individuals with disabilities, those  with limited English proficiency, and children requiring reunification  support. For example, people with disabilities were trapped in buildings  for days after Hurricane Sandy and unable to locate accessible  transportation. You asked us to examine the implementation of the Post- Katrina Act.
This report addresses the extent to which FEMA and other entities  provide disaster services to (1) individuals with disabilities, (2) individuals  with limited English proficiency, and (3) families with children.
To determine FEMA’s role in providing disaster assistance, we reviewed  and analyzed relevant federal laws, including the Post-Katrina Act;  regulations; and GAO’s prior work examining the initial implementation of  the Post-Katrina Act. We interviewed staff from FEMA headquarters,  such as staff implementing FEMA’s financial assistance programs and  those focused on the needs of disaster survivors with disabilities, referred  to in this report as disability integration staff. We also reviewed FEMA  documents, including guidance and policy documents, summary reports,  and work-plans developed by FEMA staff deployed to select disasters,  discussed further below. In addition, we observed a key training course  FEMA offered in April 2016 on disability integration in disaster  preparedness, as well as operations at the National Response  Coordination Center during a national training exercise that FEMA held in  June 2016. Finally, we interviewed representatives of relevant voluntary  organizations, selected for their expertise in providing disaster assistance  to individuals with access and functional needs, including Portlight  Strategies, Inc. and Save the Children. We assessed the information we  obtained against relevant criteria, including Standards for Internal Control  in the Federal Government, GAO’s Guide for Assessing Strategic  Training and Development Efforts in the Federal Government, and the  Program Management Institute’s The Standard for Program  Management.
To examine the role of FEMA and other entities during recent disasters,  we reviewed a nongeneralizable sample of six federally declared  disasters that occurred from March 2014 through October 2015. (See  fig. 1.) We selected disasters that varied by geographic location, type of  disaster, and urban concentration, as well as those for which FEMA, as  the primary federal coordinating agency, activated federal response and  recovery functions that address the specific needs of our target  populations. To help ensure accurate accounts of disaster response and  recovery activities, we focused on the most recent disasters that also met  these criteria.
For these six disasters, we examined efforts related to preparedness,  response, and recovery assistance for three groups of individuals with  access and functional needs, which FEMA defines as individuals who  may have additional needs before, during, and after a disaster in any  number of functional areas. We obtained this information primarily  through interviews with FEMA staff from the regional offices where each disaster occurred, including those focused on assisting survivors with  disabilities, state emergency managers, and other key officials involved in  disaster response and recovery, as identified by FEMA regional staff and  state officials. We also analyzed emergency operations planning  documentation for the six states where the disasters occurred. For three  disasters (in California, South Carolina, and Texas), we conducted site  visits to interview a range of officials in person, including those from state  and local emergency management offices, local departments of health  and human services, and local components of voluntary organizations  involved in disaster response and recovery, such as the American Red  Cross.
We conducted this performance audit from August 2015 to February 2017  in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.  Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain  sufficient, appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable basis for our  findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. We believe that  the evidence obtained provides a reasonable basis for our findings and  conclusions based on our audit objectives.
subsections: section_title: Background
paragraphs: Assistance Available under Major Disaster  Declarations   A major disaster declaration makes available  a w ide range of federal assistance programs  for individuals and public infrastructure,  including funds for both emergency and  longer-term repairs. Not all programs are  activated for every disaster. The  determination of w hich programs are  authorized is based on the types of  assistance specified in the governor’s request  and the needs identified during assessments  of the affected area to determine the extent of  the disaster.
State and local governments are primarily responsible for preparing for  and responding to natural and manmade disasters. However, if these  governments need assistance, the federal government can provide critical  support. The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency  Assistance Act, as amended (Stafford Act) outlines the process state and  local governments can use to obtain federal support under the act in  response to a disaster. First, a governor must submit a request to the  President to declare a major disaster or emergency. Once the  declaration is granted, the state becomes eligible for various types of  assistance from FEMA, such as personnel, funding, and technical  assistance, among others (see sidebar).
The Department of Homeland Security, of which FEMA is a component,  developed the National Response Framework in 2008 to define the roles  of federal, state, and local governments; the private sector; and voluntary  organizations, such as the American Red Cross (Red Cross) and faith- based organizations, in response to all types of incidents, including  disasters. The framework is designed around the principle that response  efforts must adapt to meet evolving requirements resulting from changes  in disaster size, scope, and complexity. Under the framework, state and  local agencies are primarily responsible for response and recovery  activities in their locations, including those involving health and safety. For  example, state and local agencies are responsible for carrying out  evacuations and administering shelters, when necessary, for those  affected by a disaster. When an incident occurs that exceeds or is  expected to exceed state or local resources, the federal government may  use the National Response Framework to organize the federal response  by involving all necessary department and agency capabilities and  ensuring coordination with response partners. In the case of a federally  declared disaster under the Stafford Act, FEMA has primary responsibility  for coordinating the federal response, and it targets the level of federal  support to the needs specified by states’ requests for assistance.
FEMA works with Red Cross and a number of federal agencies— including the Department of Health and Human Services and the  Department of Agriculture—as well as voluntary organizations to provide  support in the area of mass care, which includes such services as  sheltering, reunification of families, and counseling. In addition, FEMA  coordinates with voluntary organizations to ensure immediate needs that  are beyond the scope of traditional mass care services are addressed.  For example, this may include providing replacement mobility or  communication aids to individuals with disabilities.
subsections: section_title: FEMA Support of Individuals with Access and Functional Needs
subsections: section_title: At Disaster Sites
paragraphs: While the nature and complexity of a disaster and state requests for  assistance determine the extent of support FEMA provides under the  Stafford Act, agency staff are often deployed to the sites of major  disasters to assist state and local emergency managers with response  and recovery activities. The first FEMA team to deploy is called the  Incident Management Assistance Team (IMAT).  When the President  declares a major disaster, the IMAT,  made up of FEMA emergency  management staff in areas such as operations, logistics, planning, and  finance and administration, travels to the site of the disaster within 12  hours. The IMAT  helps identify what federal support may be required  and may support first responders in providing shelter (including for  individuals with access and functional needs), emergency food, and  supplies, as well as in restoring government services.
FEMA staff deployed to disasters work alongside state counterparts and  voluntary organizations at a centralized location, called the joint field  office, to facilitate coordination of disaster response and recovery efforts.  Staffing at the joint field office depends on the requirements of the  disaster but may include the following FEMA offices.
Individual Assistance: Staff from this office are generally  responsible for providing survivors with information about who may be  eligible for assistance and help them complete the application  materials. Staff may provide this information at survivors’ homes or  temporary residences as part of Disaster Survivor Assistance Teams  or at Disaster Recovery Centers, which are readily accessible facilities  or mobile offices where disaster survivors can go for information about  FEMA financial assistance programs. One set of staff—Voluntary  Agency Liaisons—gathers information about the capacity of voluntary  organizations to provide assistance to all disaster survivors, including  individuals with access and functional needs, and coordinate the  activities of the organizations and FEMA.
Office of Disability Integration and Coordination (ODIC): Staff may  be deployed from FEMA headquarters or regional offices as part of  the Disability Integration  Cadre and may include positions such as  American Sign Language interpreters. Staff are deployed to provide  assistance to federal, state, and local emergency managers on  physical, programmatic, and communication accessibility issues. For  example, staff may provide guidance and technical assistance to  Individual  Assistance staff to ensure that Disaster Recovery Centers  are physically accessible and provide disaster-related information,  such as requirements about qualifying for FEMA financial assistance,  in accessible formats, such as sign language interpretation.
Office of External Affairs (External Affairs): These staff are  generally responsible for working with state and local staff, such as  those from emergency management departments, to communicate  disaster-related information. For example, they may provide guidance  on how to apply for FEMA Individual  Assistance in the languages  spoken within the affected area.
section_title: At Regional Offices
paragraphs: In addition to onsite disaster response and recovery, staff in FEMA’s 10  regional offices conduct ongoing efforts to support individuals with access  and functional needs that may be affected in future disasters. Regional  Administrators in each of the regional offices report directly to the FEMA  Administrator and are responsible for the day-to-day management and  administration of regional activities and staff. FEMA has assigned one  staff person at each of the regional offices to focus on disability  integration. Disability integration includes integrating recommended  practices and applicable requirements related to individuals with  disabilities—such as requirements that may apply under the  Rehabilitation Act of 1973 or the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990  (ADA), both as amended—into all aspects of emergency preparedness and disaster response, recovery, and mitigation. Staff do this by  promoting inclusive practices in FEMA regional activities and through  outreach to local emergency managers. Inclusive practices are efforts to  ensure people with disabilities have equal opportunities to participate in,  and receive the benefits of, emergency programs and services. Such  practices could include involving people with disabilities in emergency  evacuation planning, ensuring that shelters are physically accessible, and  providing guidance on post-evacuation residency for individuals with  disabilities. Regional disability integration staff are also generally  expected to track information about service and support shortfalls and  about the demographics in each of the FEMA regions, such as local and  state statistics on individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, to help  keep track of what FEMA should be prepared to address in the event of a  disaster.
In addition, FEMA coordinates closely with voluntary organizations to  increase their capacity. Voluntary Agency Liaisons working in the regional  offices are tasked with building relationships among federal and state  governments and voluntary organizations, including national, state, and  local voluntary organizations active in disaster. As a part of these efforts,  they may also work with local organizations such as schools or churches  that are not typically involved in disaster assistance but that may provide  spontaneous services in response to disasters (see fig. 2).
section_title: Relevant Provisions of the Post-Katrina Act
paragraphs: The Post-Katrina Act set forth specific provisions requiring FEMA to take  actions to improve disaster assistance for individuals with access and  functional needs. Several of the provisions identify activities related to  individuals with disabilities, individuals with limited English proficiency,  and children. These provisions include, among others:
Disability Coordinator (§ 611): The FEMA Administrator is required to appoint a Disability Coordinator to help ensure that the needs of individuals with disabilities are being properly addressed in emergency preparedness and disaster relief. The Disability Coordinator is charged with consulting with government agencies, such as the National Council on Disability, and organizations that represent the interests and rights of individuals with disabilities, regarding their needs. Other responsibilities of the Disability Coordinator include ensuring coordination and dissemination of best practices; developing training materials for emergency managers; promoting accessibility of phone hotlines, websites, and video broadcasts regarding emergency information; and providing guidance and implementing policies to ensure the rights of individuals with disabilities regarding post-evacuation residency are respected.
Accommodations  Guidelines for People with Disabilities (§ 689(a)): The FEMA Administrator is required, in coordination with the Disability Coordinator and other government entities, including the National Council on Disability, to develop guidelines to accommodate individuals with disabilities regarding (1) the accessibility of, and communications and programs in, shelters, recovery centers, and other facilities; and (2) devices used in disaster operations, including first aid stations, mass feeding areas, portable payphone stations, portable toilets, and temporary housing.
Disaster-Related Information Services (§ 689e): The FEMA Administrator is required, in coordination with state and local governments, to identify population groups with limited English proficiency and take them into account when planning for a major disaster. The Administrator must ensure that information is made available in formats that can be understood by individuals with limited  English proficiency and with disabilities. The Administrator is required  to develop and maintain an informational clearinghouse of model  language assistance programs and best practices for state and local  governments in providing services related to a major disaster.
Child Reunification (§ 689b(b)): The FEMA Administrator is  required to establish, in coordination with the Attorney General, the  National Emergency Child Locator Center within the National Center  for Missing and Exploited Children, and establish procedures to  make all relevant information available to the Child Locator Center in  a timely manner to facilitate reunification of children and families who  have been displaced as a result of a major disaster.
section_title: Individuals with Disabilities Receive a Range of Disaster Assistance from FEMA and Other Entities, but FEMA Could Improve Its Support of Some Efforts
subsections: section_title: FEMA Assists Individuals with Disabilities by Promoting Inclusive Practices to Groups That Respond to Disasters
paragraphs: Since the Post-Katrina Act was enacted, FEMA has promoted inclusive  practices for assisting disaster survivors with disabilities in several ways.  To comply with the Post-Katrina Act requirement to appoint a Disability  Coordinator, FEMA created the Office of Disability Integration and  Coordination (ODIC) in 2010 to increase attention to disaster assistance  that considers the needs of people with disabilities across FEMA and  among groups responding to disasters, such as state and local  emergency managers. ODIC officials said that while the role of the  Disability Coordinator under the Post-Katrina Act is to ensure that the  needs of individuals with disabilities are properly addressed in disaster  relief, FEMA has no enforcement authority with state and local agencies.  Therefore, they said that ODIC and disability integration staff in FEMA’s  regional offices focus on providing guidance to and developing  relationships with other FEMA divisions, such as Individual  Assistance;  other federal agencies; state and local governments; and public, private,  and faith-based voluntary organizations. FEMA’s guidance and  relationships are focused on building greater awareness of what is  required to adequately serve people with disabilities impacted by  disasters, such as requirements that may apply under the ADA. As of  August 2016, ODIC reported approximately 85 disability integration staff  in headquarters and the regions and anticipated increasing the staff to  285 by calendar year 2018 (see fig. 3).
Disability integration staff we spoke with in FEMA headquarters and in  five of the six regional offices where the selected disasters occurred  said they work with staff in other FEMA divisions, such as Individual  Assistance, to ensure that FEMA programs and facilities are accessible to  individuals with disabilities and to develop guidance for state and local  emergency managers. For example, ODIC officials told us they helped  FEMA’s Individual  Assistance division develop guidance in 2010 for state  and local emergency managers and shelter operators, Guidance on  Planning for Integration of Functional Needs Support Services in General  Population Shelters. This document includes, for example, guidance on  equipping shelters with durable medical supplies, communication devices,  and assistive technology, such as wheelchairs, accessible cots, hearing  aids, teletypewriter phones, and screen readers. ODIC officials said they  have contributed to several other key documents, including the National  Response Framework and its Mass Evacuation Incident Annex, to help  integrate the needs of people with disabilities in emergency  management. ODIC officials said they also worked closely with FEMA’s  Exercise Branch to plan and participate in emergency preparation  exercises. For example, during FEMA’s most recent exercise, a  disability integration representative was tasked with assessing how well  exercise participants across the agency integrated disability-related  considerations in their response efforts. In the five disasters we  reviewed at which disability integration staff were deployed, these staff  helped assess potential Disaster Recovery Center locations to ensure  they were accessible to individuals with disabilities. This included the  physical accessibility of parking lots, entrances, water fountains, and  bathrooms, as well as equipping these centers with items to ensure  communication accessibility, such as assistive listening devices,  documents in braille, and tablet computers that connected to remote  American Sign Language translation services.
Disability integration staff we spoke with also reported taking a number of  steps to engage external stakeholders, including those representing  localities, states, other federal agencies, and voluntary organizations, on  strategies to assist people with disabilities impacted by disasters. For  example:
FEMA disability integration staff in California said they worked with  state officials, along with other FEMA staff, to provide training to local  disability partners on the role of long-term recovery groups  and  identified grant opportunities for these partners to strengthen their  ability to provide recovery support services following disasters.  According to ODIC officials, it is standard practice for disability  integration staff to create strategies for each disaster to which they  deploy to guide their activities, including their coordination with state  and local stakeholders.
ODIC chairs the Interagency Coordinating Council on Emergency  Preparedness and Individuals with Disabilities (council), which was  created in 2004 specifically to strengthen emergency preparedness  for individuals with disabilities. The council’s membership represents  25 federal agencies and, according to ODIC officials discusses,  among other topics, how interagency partners can engage in  preparing for, responding to, recovering from, and mitigating all  hazards inclusive of people with disabilities and others with access  and functional needs. For example, ODIC officials said that one  council meeting included a discussion about integrating the needs of  people with disabilities into an active shooter training curriculum.
ODIC facilitated the development of memorandums of agreement  between FEMA and several nongovernmental stakeholders to better  support these organizations’ efforts to assist disaster survivors with  disabilities. For example, FEMA and one national disability advocacy  organization agreed to participate in disaster exercises together and  share best practices for delivering services to people with disabilities.
section_title: Lack of Procedure Limits ODIC’s Potential Effectiveness with Regional Disability Integration Activities
paragraphs: Despite the progress made by FEMA to promote practices to address the  needs of individuals with disabilities, these efforts may be hindered  because, according to ODIC officials, there is no established procedure  for involving ODIC in certain efforts related to regional disability  integration staff. ODIC officials said that FEMA’s Regional  Administrators—not ODIC—determine the reporting chain for these staff,  and regions vary in the extent to which they consult with ODIC on  disability integration issues. We identified three areas where FEMA’s lack  of established procedures for involving ODIC may result in challenges  pursuing common goals and effectively sharing and leveraging  information to achieve those goals:
Role of regional disability integration staff. According to ODIC  officials, FEMA’s disability integration efforts are focused on  supporting access to disaster-related facilities, programs, and  communication for individuals with disabilities. However, ODIC  officials told us that some Regional Administrators do not involve  ODIC when determining the duties of regional disability integration  staff and may not assign these staff to certain key duties. For  example, disability integration staff in some regions may be assigned  to focus on recovery activities, such as working with community  partners to ensure that individuals with disabilities are included in local  long-term recovery group efforts. However, according to ODIC, these  staff may have little involvement in promoting public communication  that is accessible to individuals with disabilities following disasters. In  addition, ODIC officials said that regions do not consistently include a  position for disability integration staff on their IMATs, which are the  first FEMA teams to deploy to disaster sites. ODIC officials said that  regional IMATs  that do not include this position may not have  adequate knowledge about guidelines for accessibility for emergency  alerts, evacuation processes, and shelters, hindering the ability to  plan for the needs of the whole community at the onset of FEMA’s  disaster response. Moreover, according to ODIC officials, disability  integration staff have misunderstood their roles and responsibilities  during disasters. ODIC officials said they have clarified these roles  and responsibilities through a FEMA guidance document they issued  in December 2016, which they said may help resolve these  misunderstandings.
Performance goals for regional disability integration staff. ODIC  officials said they provided suggested performance goals for regional  disability integration staff to these staff’s supervisors in the regions,  which included goals related to community engagement, information  collection, and coordination with ODIC. ODIC officials told us that  FEMA’s Deputy Administrator and Chief of Staff directed Regional  Administrators to include ODIC when setting performance goals and  conducting assessments of regional disability integration staff.  Nevertheless, according to ODIC officials, there are no established  procedures for how Regional Administrators are to involve ODIC, and  while some regions engage ODIC in this performance management  role, others do not. As a result, ODIC may be unaware of regional  disability integration staff who are not performing well and may need  additional guidance, thereby decreasing the effectiveness of disaster  services for people with disabilities.
Communication among disability integration staff. ODIC hosts  weekly phone calls with regional disability integration staff to build  cohesion and discuss promising practices and progress on  challenges. However, ODIC officials reported that in the first 6 months  of 2016, 2 of the 10 regions repeatedly missed weekly calls with  ODIC. In addition, 2 other regions were not represented on the calls  for a majority of that time because they did not have disability  integration staff. ODIC officials in headquarters said they do not  directly oversee disability integration staff in the regions so they  cannot require these staff to participate in the weekly calls.  Additionally,  they said regions with vacancies for key disability  integration positions may not have other staff with the expertise to  coordinate disability integration activities and report these activities at  weekly ODIC meetings. As a result of this inconsistent  communication, ODIC officials may not receive information on  disability integration activities from all regions, which may affect their  ability to oversee and assess these activities. Additionally,  regional  disability integration staff who do not consistently participate in these  calls may lose opportunities to gain important information from each  other and from ODIC to use in their disaster assistance efforts.
ODIC officials and stakeholders shared several examples of the effect of  the lack of procedures for involving ODIC in regional disability integration  activities on FEMA’s ability to provide informative, responsive support to  stakeholders and to leverage existing relationships with partners. For  example, ODIC officials said that at times they were unaware that  regional disability integration staff were invited to represent FEMA at  national conferences, despite reminders that such invitations were  required to be cleared through ODIC. Officials said they later learned that  these staff provided inaccurate information to state and local emergency  managers. Emergency managers with inaccurate information may be less  effective at integrating the needs of people with disabilities in their  disaster preparedness efforts.
Our prior work on other aspects of FEMA’s coordination between  headquarters and regional offices has identified similar challenges,  including limitations in FEMA’s ability to coordinate monitoring activities  for certain grant programs and cohesively manage its regional contracting  workforce. Internal control standards state that, in establishing an  organizational structure, agencies should consider how their components  interact and define reporting lines that allow the components to  communicate information necessary to fulfill their respective  responsibilities.
section_title: Localities, Voluntary Organizations, and States in Selected Disasters Provided Assistance to Individuals with Disabilities but Entities May Have Difficulty Accessing FEMA Training
paragraphs: Local agencies and voluntary organizations involved in the six disasters  we reviewed served central roles in responding to the needs of residents  impacted by the disasters, including people with disabilities. For example:
Communicating information. In South Carolina, local officials and  FEMA disability integration staff said they both provided American  Sign Language interpreters to communicate disaster-related  information to people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Local officials  in California similarly said they made these services available. In  California, local officials in one county told us they maintained a list of  elderly residents receiving in-home health support services and called  every person on the list during the September 2015 wildfires to see if  they needed assistance evacuating their homes.
Providing shelter. Local officials and representatives of voluntary  organizations we spoke with said they provided or supported shelters  for those affected by the disasters, including those with disabilities. In  the three disaster areas we visited, local officials and representatives  of voluntary organizations  said shelter facilities were generally  compliant with ADA requirements or met other accessibility  guidelines, as applicable.
Assisting with daily living activities. According to representatives  of voluntary organizations, local officials, and FEMA regional staff in  the three disaster areas we visited, voluntary organizations helped  individuals with disabilities maintain independence with their daily  living activities, such as by replacing durable medical equipment that  was lost or damaged. For example, local officials and FEMA regional  staff in Texas said that voluntary organizations helped provide  individuals with oxygen tanks, wheelchairs, walkers, motorized  scooters, communication devices, glasses, and accommodated their  needs for personal assistance services.
State officials in the three disaster areas we visited said they supported  local and voluntary organizations’ response efforts with strategic  initiatives designed to address the needs of individuals with disabilities.  For example, state officials from Texas told us that the state established a  Disability Task Force on Emergency Management. Convened in 2011,  the Task Force helped produce guidance to assist local emergency  managers and shelter planners in understanding certain requirements  and best practices for assisting disaster survivors with disabilities. The  guidance includes tips on interacting with and assisting people who use  service dogs, canes, crutches, wheelchairs, or have mental illnesses.
In recognition of the central role that localities, voluntary organizations,  and states serve in disaster assistance activities, FEMA has developed  guidance and training to increase their awareness of requirements and  best practices for including individuals with disabilities in emergency  planning. Specifically, ODIC officials said that in 2013 FEMA began  offering a key course—Integrating Access and Functional Needs into  Emergency Planning—to state and local emergency managers and other  stakeholders. Participants can take the 2-day course free-of-charge at  FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute in Maryland  or, as FEMA  resources allow, from FEMA instructors from ODIC who travel to locations  across the country to deliver the course. The course includes substantial  information on incorporating the needs of people with disabilities in  emergency planning, including information that could have helped  address certain challenges we heard about from local officials. For  instance, during the September 2015 wildfires in California, local officials  said that staffing constraints and a lack of onsite clinical expertise  prompted them to redirect individuals with disabilities from general  population shelters to hospitals or other facilities where officials felt they  could be more safely accommodated. One module of FEMA’s training  addresses the importance of accommodating individuals with disabilities  in general population shelters unless they have acute medical needs.  Similarly, disability advocates caution against redirecting individuals with  disabilities to medical facilities for shelter during disasters as this practice  can have negative impacts on these individuals’ personal  independence. In another example, local officials in one Texas county  described challenges communicating with the deaf population following  the 2015 flooding and noted a recent effort to add video capabilities to  their 9-1-1 system to reach such populations. FEMA’s training also covers  practical tips on how to ensure access to communication about disaster  assistance, including through video relay services.
ODIC officials said that all state and local emergency managers, public  health officials, community leaders, and other stakeholders would benefit  from the training, but officials do not have specific goals or milestones in  place for the number who receive it. ODIC officials estimated that at least  843 federal, state, and local emergency managers participated in the  training from June 2013 through July 2016. However, given the number of local officials who play a role in disaster response, many state and  local emergency managers have yet to take the training. Officials said  they have not gathered information about how many additional  emergency managers and other local officials could benefit from this  training and have not set goals for future participation.
Further, ODIC faces challenges in satisfying current requests for training,  according to officials. Some state and local officials have not taken the  course because of the cost of traveling to Maryland to access it in person  and have requested the training be offered locally. As of July 2016,  course instructors from ODIC have delivered the training locally in 22  states and in the District of Columbia. However, ODIC officials reported  that many of these states have requested additional training in other  locations within the state and ODIC has been unable to fulfill these  requests. ODIC officials said they have limited travel funding to deliver the  training onsite for all who request it and that FEMA cannot legally accept  funding from states for travel expenses for its employees to conduct the  course. ODIC officials also said they rely on a small pool of staff— including the ODIC director—to teach the course. ODIC staff said they  recently began to consider alternative training delivery methods, such as  a virtual course to supplement the in-person course in Maryland.  However, they have not evaluated such alternatives and, as yet have no  specific plans to offer the course using an alternative method.
We have previously reported that agencies should consider learning that  provides trainees with the flexibility  to choose among different training delivery methods (such as web-based and instructor-led) while leveraging  resources in the most efficient way possible. We also previously  recommended that FEMA establish and use goals, milestones, and  performance measures to monitor the performance of its programs  designed to help state and local stakeholders determine their readiness to  respond to disasters. Leading practices identified in the Program  Management Institute’s The Standard for Program Management call for  agencies to develop meaningful measures to monitor program  performance and to track the accomplishment of the program’s goals and  objectives. Without collecting information about the potential pool of  participants, identifying goals for the number of state and local officials  who receive the training, and providing the training in the alternative  formats needed to meet the goals, ODIC may be missing opportunities to  ensure its training reaches a sufficiently wide audience. Further, state and  local officials who have a central role in assisting people with disabilities  impacted by disasters may lack awareness of how to adequately serve  this population.
section_title: Individuals with Limited English Proficiency Receive Disaster Information in Different Languages from FEMA and Other Stakeholders
subsections: section_title: FEMA Provides Translations of Written and Verbal Information about Its Programs to Individuals with Limited English Proficiency
paragraphs: FEMA provides information on its programs to individuals with limited  English proficiency through written and oral translations in other  languages and through additional resources, such as a coordinator and  support team focused on limited English proficiency. As a general  approach, FEMA officials said they identify languages spoken in each  state through data from the Census Bureau. FEMA’s External Affairs  staff maintain these data to use when an area is impacted by a disaster.  FEMA officials said that these data represent an initial language  assessment to determine the language needs of the affected  population. After a disaster is declared, officials said they continue to  refine their understanding of the language needs in the area by collecting  additional demographic information from state and local officials,  volunteer organizations, and disaster survivors. For example, the Census  data that FEMA used in 2015 indicated that 170 languages were spoken  in Texas. Following that state’s flooding, FEMA officials said they reached  out to officials in the most affected areas and identified Spanish and  Vietnamese as the languages that were most commonly spoken in the  area.
FEMA maintains many previously-translated documents in commonly  encountered languages in an agency library that it can readily access  when disaster occurs. According to the plan that summarizes how FEMA  ensures disaster assistance communications are accessible to those with  limited English proficiency, the online library contains news releases,  flyers, and other written information in more than 20 languages that  FEMA produced following Hurricane Sandy in 2011 (see sidebar). Such  translated documents may include Individual  Assistance program  brochures explaining the registration process and correspondence about  the status of individual applications, disaster preparedness and recovery  activities, and press releases with pertinent disaster-related information.  In all five disasters we reviewed at which FEMA provided Individual  Assistance, officials told us FEMA provided printed materials, such as  those about FEMA financial assistance, in multiple languages at locations  such as the Disaster Recovery Centers.
The results of the language assessment process also help inform FEMA  decisions about the number of staff proficient in multiple languages to  deploy to the disaster-affected location. FEMA deploys these staff to  explain the benefits and registration process for FEMA programs to  individuals who are not proficient in English. External Affairs can also  deploy members of a support team to assist regional office staff with new  strategies to reach limited English proficiency populations affected by a  disaster and can initiate contracts for additional translation services. For  example, during the 2015 wildfires in California, External Affairs both  deployed a support team member and contracted with a translation  service to assist with media communications to Spanish speakers. To  identify survivors’ preferred languages, staff can use aids produced by  FEMA and the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (another  component of the Department of Homeland Security), such as language  identification guides (see fig. 4).
If staff proficient in a specific language are not available at Disaster  Recovery Centers, individual survivors can call FEMA’s helpline, which  provides translation services. The toll-free number is posted online and  on FEMA documents. These translation services are offered through  FEMA’s National Processing Service Centers. According to FEMA’s Draft  Language Access Plan, FEMA can provide disaster assistance  information in more than 50 languages. FEMA publicizes these services  through flyers, news releases, outreach to the community, and other  promotion efforts. In addition, throughout a disaster, staff from these  service centers and External Affairs continuously share information on the  language needs of a location, officials said, and may adjust their  resources based on changes in language requests.
In four of the five disasters we reviewed where FEMA provided Individual  Assistance, FEMA deployed bilingual staff to work in Disaster Recovery  Centers, as part of Disaster Survivor Assistance Teams, or as Voluntary  Agency Liaisons. For example, following the 2015 flooding in Oklahoma,  officials told us that while visiting a community that primarily speaks  Spanish, Disaster Survivor Assistance Team members proficient in  Spanish were able to communicate information about FEMA assistance  to survivors. However, state officials in Texas told us that while FEMA  provided some bilingual staff following the 2015 Memorial Day flooding,  those resources were inadequate in some areas, such as along the  Texas border. As a result, the officials said that voluntary organizations  assisting in the recovery provided translation services to fill this gap.  According to regional FEMA officials, FEMA deployed 30 Spanish  interpreters to Disaster Recovery Centers and Disaster Survivor  Assistance Teams in Texas following the 2015 flooding. They also noted  that while FEMA initially could not provide sufficient resources to fulfill  requests for these personnel, additional bilingual staff were deployed  within 3 weeks of the disaster declaration. Individuals affected by the  flooding were able to apply for FEMA assistance until approximately 4  months after the date of declaration.
FEMA also engages in activities during non-disaster times to ensure  access to disaster-related information for individuals with limited English  proficiency. For example, FEMA officials said External Affairs has  established two positions to work with stakeholders before a disaster occurs: a Limited English Proficiency coordinator and a media relations  specialist. The coordinator is responsible for ensuring access to FEMA  program information for individuals with limited English proficiency, such  as by ensuring that FEMA’s website includes translated information. The  coordinator also conducts strategic planning and leverages relationships  with national and local organizations to broaden FEMA’s reach into  communities with limited English proficiency. The media relations  specialist focuses specifically on building relationships with Spanish- speaking media. In addition, FEMA offers training to FEMA staff and state  and local emergency managers that includes elements intended to  ensure access to information for individuals with limited English  proficiency. FEMA requires all of its employees to complete civil rights  training, which includes a module on the federal laws that prohibit  discrimination and require meaningful access to services for this  population, how to identify language needs, available multilingual FEMA  resources, and different strategies for conducting outreach in  communities. FEMA also developed a series of trainings designed for  state and local officials—which is offered in a variety of formats, including  at FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute and online—on effective  approaches to disseminating information publicly following disasters. For  example, objectives of one course include identifying critical audiences  and learning to recognize the functional needs and challenges of different  audiences.
FEMA officials noted that all of these efforts, including the language  assessment, translated materials, oral interpretation services, and  trainings, represent FEMA’s efforts to share best practices with state and  local emergency managers on providing services to individuals with  limited English proficiency, to comply with the Post-Katrina Act. Rather  than maintaining an informational clearinghouse in the form of a central  website or database that may become quickly outdated, officials told us  that these efforts allow them to tailor FEMA assistance for disaster  survivors to the unique resources available and needs of each location  affected by a disaster.
section_title: State and Local Agencies and Voluntary Organizations in Selected Disasters Provided Health and Safety Information to Individuals with Limited English Proficiency
paragraphs: State, local, or voluntary organizations in all six disasters we reviewed  disseminated information on evacuations and shelters using a range of  communication methods and translation services to assist individuals with  limited English proficiency in accessing resources. For example, officials  said that local agencies communicated through hotlines and reverse 9-1- 1 calls to relay evacuation and shelter information to the general public.  As described in the National Response Framework, state and local  agencies are generally responsible for distributing health and safety  information—including information related to evacuations and shelters.  We found that state emergency planning documentation for all six  disasters we reviewed assigned responsibility to state and local agencies  for disseminating this type of information.
To provide access to such information specifically to individuals with  limited English proficiency, state, local, or voluntary organizations in five  of the six disasters we reviewed reported providing a range of translation  services. State or local agencies in two of the disasters had bilingual staff  members available, and state or voluntary organizations in three other  disasters provided access to interpreters by phone. In three of the six  disasters, state or local agencies relied on support from voluntary  organizations to provide interpreters for those who were not English  proficient. For example, during the 2015 snowstorms in Massachusetts,  state officials said that a voluntary organization’s call center provided  information, such as shelter locations, in multiple languages. State and  local officials in two disasters relied on local churches to provide  information to their members or other Spanish-speaking residents. For  example, officials in Oklahoma said they relied on churches in a large  Spanish-speaking community in Oklahoma City to spread information on  recovery resources following flooding in 2015.
State and local agencies can also leverage FEMA resources to translate  or distribute recovery information. According to FEMA officials, state and  local emergency managers can obtain the results of FEMA’s language  assessments, which include information about populations with limited  English proficiency, to better target resources to needs. In addition,  FEMA officials said they fulfilled requests from California officials to  translate state documents into Spanish following the 2015 wildfires.  Similarly, following the 2015 flooding in South Carolina, state officials said  they requested help from FEMA to print information about registering for  FEMA assistance in English and Spanish on fans, which were then  distributed to flood victims in churches (see fig. 5).
In addition to these efforts to reach individuals with limited English  proficiency during disasters, local officials in two of the disasters we  reviewed said limited resources prevented them from translating disaster  information into other languages. To address this problem, local officials  may seek assistance from external resources. For example, local officials  in Texas said that although emergency communications are not currently  translated into other languages, they are considering partnering with  private organizations to facilitate translations when needed. According to  FEMA’s Draft Language Access Plan and External Affairs officials, FEMA  can also provide support in the form of translating disaster materials into  the languages spoken by those affected by disasters.
section_title: Families with Children May Access Reunification Resources in Future Disasters
paragraphs: FEMA has worked to develop resources to reunite children separated  from their families during disasters, but it has not had to activate them in  an actual disaster since they were developed. Following the need for  reuniting children with their families and for other assistance for children  highlighted during Hurricane Katrina, the Post-Katrina Act required that  FEMA establish the National Emergency Child Locator Center, a child  reunification call center operated by the National Center for Missing and  Exploited Children (NCMEC).
The first step in establishing this center was to enhance information- sharing during federally declared disasters, which FEMA officials said  they did with NCMEC, Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of  Investigation,  and Red Cross through a memorandum of understanding  signed in 2007. Following a disaster declaration, FEMA may request that  NCMEC activate the National Emergency Child Locator Center and then  refer child-specific inquiries to NCMEC. NCMEC uses a call center as  part of its day-to-day operations, but following a disaster, it can increase  staffing to meet anticipated call volume. Following a disaster, call center  staff would work with law enforcement, NCMEC staff, counterparts at  FEMA, and Red Cross to learn the ground-level context of a disaster to  more effectively field calls. NCMEC also maintains the Unaccompanied  Minors Registry, a national repository for information about children who  may be separated from their families as a result of a disaster. The first of  its kind, the registry would allow entities such as law enforcement,  medical facilities, shelter operators, and individuals to submit reports  about children that are displaced due to a disaster. It was designed with a  web-based portal that could allow for one-way communication from these  external sources. Law enforcement and NCMEC staff could use the  information submitted to the registry to reunite families by cross- referencing it against any information they may have collected through  other means.
According to FEMA officials and emergency managers, no disasters have  required national child reunification support since Hurricane Katrina,  where an estimated 5,000 children were reported to be separated from  their families and guardians during the storm. As a result, FEMA has not  called upon NCMEC to activate the National Emergency Child Locator  Center. Nevertheless, FEMA continues to work with NCMEC and other  partners on maintaining reunification resources. For example, in 2015  FEMA renewed an agreement it has with NCMEC to provide funding for  deploying NCMEC personnel onsite following disasters. In addition,  FEMA addressed child reunification during its 2016 Cascadia Rising  training exercise, and FEMA participants assembled a child reunification  task force. One challenge members of that task force identified during the  exercise was related to communicating with children and parents with  auditory or visual impairments.
Since the enactment of the Post-Katrina Act, FEMA has worked with  governmental and non-governmental entities more generally to address  the needs of families with children who are affected by disasters. In 2007,  FEMA joined other federal agencies and voluntary organizations, such as  the Red Cross, in the establishment of the National Commission on  Children in Disasters. Established by the Kids in Disasters Well-being,  Safety, and Health Act of 2007, the group worked to identify gaps in  policy for disaster assistance for children, and it issued reports in 2009  and 2010 that recommended changes to close those gaps, such as  improving the capacity to provide child care services in the immediate  aftermath of a disaster. In 2009, FEMA established a working group on  children in disasters to engage representatives of multiple FEMA divisions  in addressing the recommendations. The official leading the working  group was appointed in 2015 to be the National Advisor on Children and  Disasters. The responsibility of this advisor is to coordinate efforts and  implement resources across FEMA and externally. FEMA and NCMEC  also co-led the effort to issue a report in 2013 as guidance for post- disaster reunification. A primary goal of the report was to support  reunification processes and procedures by identifying the roles and  responsibilities of governments and voluntary organizations, among other  stakeholders. It was designed as a guidance tool to assist these  stakeholders in developing reunification plans that are inclusive, such as  considering the needs of children who are nonverbal or who have  disabilities.
FEMA officials from two of the six disasters we reviewed described other  assistance provided to children. Following the California wildfires, FEMA  worked with school districts in the affected areas to bus students  temporarily living outside their communities, in shelters or temporary  housing, to their regular schools. Following the mudslide in Washington,  the state provided similar assistance for students and teachers separated  from their schools by the mudslide area by opening up an alternative  access route. In addition, FEMA provided individual  families with  reimbursements for the extra cost of child care resulting from the  extended commuting time required by the detour. Staff from another  federal agency involved in disaster recovery, the Department of Health  and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families, initiated a  task force designed to provide mental and emotional health resources for  area children affected by the mudslide. For example, the organizations  involved in the task force funded a full-time counselor at an area school.
section_title: Conclusions
paragraphs: FEMA has taken steps since Hurricane Katrina to promote inclusive  emergency management practices through its Office of Disability  Integration and Coordination (ODIC). However, this progress may be  hampered because FEMA lacks procedures to help ensure regions  consistently involve ODIC in their disability integration activities and  because of ODIC’s limited approach to delivering critical disability  integration training. The lack of established procedures for involving ODIC  in the disability integration activities of the regional staff has resulted in  misunderstood roles, a lack of awareness about potentially  underperforming staff, and inconsistent communication between the  regions and headquarters. In addition, the limited training delivery  methods ODIC uses for its key disability integration course, as well as  ODIC’s lack of understanding about the pool of potential participants, may  mean a substantial number of state and local emergency managers do  not receive it. Both the use of regional disability integration staff and the  training serve as important methods of communicating with state and  local emergency managers to provide them with knowledge and tools to  best support individuals with disabilities during a disaster. Without  improvements in these areas, FEMA may be missing opportunities to help  these emergency managers better meet the needs of individuals with  disabilities affected by disasters.
section_title: Recommendations for Executive Action
paragraphs: 1.  To better ensure FEMA’s regional activities effectively support  individuals with disabilities, the Secretary of Homeland Security  should direct the FEMA Administrator to take steps to establish written  procedures for how regions should involve the Office of Disability  Integration and Coordination in clarifying disability integration staff’s  roles, evaluating staff performance, and setting expectations for how  staff communicate with headquarters and the regions.  2.  To better position FEMA to expand access to key training on  incorporating access and functional needs into emergency planning  for state, local, and voluntary organization emergency management  officials, the Secretary of Homeland Security should direct the FEMA  Administrator to evaluate alternative cost-effective methods for  delivering its course on access and functional needs, such as via  virtual classes.  3.  To help ensure its key training on incorporating access and functional  needs into emergency planning reaches a sufficiently wide audience,  the Secretary should direct the FEMA Administrator to collect  information about the potential pool of participants, set general goals  for the number of state and local emergency managers that will take  this course, and implement the delivery methods needed to meet  these goals.
section_title: Agency Comments
paragraphs: We provided a draft of this report to the Federal Emergency Management  Agency (FEMA), within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), for  review and comment. Officials provided written comments, which are  reproduced in appendix II  and described below, as well as technical  comments, which we incorporated in the report as appropriate.
FEMA agreed with all three of our recommendations and outlined steps it  plans to take to implement them.
Regarding our first recommendation to establish written procedures to  clarify the role of regional disability integration staff, officials noted  FEMA’s plans to convene a working group to identify effective  communication channels and foster collaborative relationships among  ODIC, Regional Administrators, and regional disability integration staff.  More specifically, FEMA expects the workgroup to build on the directive  issued in December 2016 and establish written procedures on (1) the  roles and responsibilities of regional disability integration staff; (2)  developing performance goals to assess their performance; and (3)  opening clearer communication channels among these staff, Regional  Administrators, and disability integration staff in headquarters. We  applaud FEMA’s effort to clarify the roles and responsibilities of regional  disability integration staff in its recently issued directive. We believe that  FEMA’s proposed plan to further encourage collaboration through the  issuance of instructions for implementing the directive will help to better  ensure support for and inclusion of individuals with disabilities affected by  disasters across all FEMA regions.
Regarding our second and third recommendations related to the delivery  method and participants for FEMA’s key course on integrating access and  functional needs into emergency planning, FEMA officials said they plan  to explore additional delivery methods through various means, including  through participant feedback. Additionally,  they plan to develop a baseline  of the number of emergency managers taking the course, including  identifying specific numbers for the target audience by state and  establishing a reasonable metric for the annual delivery of the course.  FEMA officials stated that these metrics will also help inform FEMA  leadership on the potential need to develop alternative delivery methods.  We encourage FEMA to pursue these efforts and continue to believe that  such efforts, if implemented, will provide a greater number of state and  local emergency managers and others with the knowledge and tools to  best support people with disabilities before, during, and after disasters.
We are sending copies of this report to the appropriate congressional  committees, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and other interested  parties. In addition, the report is available at no charge on the GAO  website at http://www.gao.gov.
If you or your staff have any questions about this report, please contact  me at (202) 512-7215 or brownke@gao.gov. Contact points for our  Offices of Congressional Relations and Public Affairs may be found on  the last page of this report. GAO staff who made key contributions to this  report are listed in appendix III.
section_title: Appendix I: Emergency Support Function Descriptions and Coordinating or Primary Agencies
section_title: Appendix II: Comments from the Department of Homeland Security
section_title: Appendix III: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments
subsections: section_title: GAO Contact
section_title: Staff Acknowledgments
paragraphs: In addition to the contact named above, Sara Schibanoff Kelly (Assistant  Director), Sara Pelton (Analyst-in-Charge), Aimee Elivert, and Lauren  Friedman made key contributions to this report. Also contributing to this  report were Susan Aschoff, Jessica Botsford, Sarah Cornetto, Lauren  Gilbertson, Kristen Jones, Jean McSween, Mimi Nguyen, Debra Prescott,  Almeta Spencer, and Erica Varner.
section_title: Related GAO Products
paragraphs: Emergency Communications: Effectiveness of the Post-Katrina  Interagency Coordination Group Could Be Enhanced. GAO-16-681.  Washington, D.C.: July 14, 2016.
Disaster Recovery: FEMA Needs to Assess Its Effectiveness in  Implementing the National Disaster Recovery Framework. GAO-16-476.  Washington, D.C.: May 26, 2016.
Disaster Response: FEMA Has Made Progress Implementing Key  Programs, but Opportunities for Improvement Exist. GAO-16-87.  Washington, D.C.: February 5, 2016.
Federal Emergency Management Agency: Strengthening Regional  Coordination Could Enhance Preparedness Efforts. GAO-16-38.  Washington, D.C.: February 4, 2016.
Emergency Management: FEMA Has Made Progress since Hurricanes  Katrina and Sandy, but Challenges Remain. GAO-16-90T. Washington,  D.C.: October 22, 2015.
Disaster Contracting: FEMA Needs to Cohesively Manage Its Workforce  and Fully Address Post-Katrina Reforms. GAO-15-783. Washington,  D.C.: September 29, 2015.
Emergency Management: FEMA Collaborates Effectively with  Logistics  Partners but Could Strengthen Implementation of Its Capabilities  Assessment Tool. GAO-15-781. Washington, D.C.: September 10, 2015.
American Red Cross: Disaster Assistance Would Benefit from Oversight  through Regular Federal Evaluation. GAO-15-565. Washington, D.C.:  September 9, 2015.
Emergency Preparedness: Opportunities Exist to Strengthen Interagency  Assessments and Accountability for Closing Capability Gaps. GAO-15-20.  Washington, D.C.: December 4, 2014.
Actions Taken to Implement the Post-Katrina Emergency Management  Reform Act of 2006, GAO-09-59R. Washington, D.C.: November 21,  2008.
National Disaster Response: FEMA Should Take Action to Improve  Capacity and Coordination between  Government and Voluntary Sectors.  GAO-08-369. Washington, D.C.: February 27, 2008.