Immediate Needs Funding for FEMA

Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring the voices of my constituents in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, to the floor of the people's House.

In 2008, homes along the northern shore of Lake Koshkonong and within the surrounding community were absolutely devastated by a record-setting flood. This was a 500-year flood event. It is the same one that ravaged much of the upper Midwest and, in particular, Wisconsin and Iowa.

During that storm, I knew that the damage was going to be devastating and that many of the houses in our community would be beyond repair. What I didn't know was that, almost 2 years after the floods, the agency upon which they relied would be leaving these hardworking Americans behind. You see, in February of this year, FEMA instituted what it calls ``immediate needs funding.'' Basically, they are freezing already approved funds to folks in Wisconsin and in other disaster areas across the country.

A couple of weekends ago, I had the chance to visit with property owners from my district, of whom I have the privilege of representing, who have been affected. They are survivors of the 2008 floods. I wanted to hear their stories. Many brought photos and letters. They brought their own unique stories. They brought their anger and their frustrations.

I met with Gene and Marie Harris at their home on Lamp Road, one of the most extensively damaged neighborhoods in this flood. The damage was so extensive that their house was absolutely uninhabitable and has been since the flood. They showed me photos of before, during, and after, and we talked about the tangle of bureaucratic red tape that they waded through in order to get approved for the FEMA dollars. They were approved for the FEMA money, but they haven't received a penny because of the funding freeze. When I asked Marie to recall what they had gone through back in June of 2008, not surprisingly, she welled up with tears.

Mr. Speaker, our hearts go out to the victims of the recent floods and of natural disasters. Yet I fear we suffer from that old adage, ``Out of sight, out of mind.'' Once the cameras are packed away and the news crews leave for the next breaking story, what happens to the victims and survivors of these natural disasters? Will the families in Tennessee or in Arkansas suffer the same fate as Wisconsinites and Iowans? Will they see their funding from FEMA freeze even after it has been approved?

One would hope that the system of emergency response would keep on plugging away, assisting the families in need across this country, but we have seen that system completely break down. This is unacceptable.

It has been 2 years since their homes were devastated, and my neighbors are still living in temporary housing, and they are enduring financial chaos. One man is homeless. Another family is on the verge of bankruptcy because of the situation that FEMA has left them in.

I know this is wrong. My constituents know this is wrong. The Federal Government has to do better.

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