Congressman Byron Donalds, who represents Florida’s 19th district in the U.S. Congress, has used his social media platform to advocate for significant changes to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), calling for its removal from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and a direct reporting line to the President.
On September 4, 2025, Donalds posted: “When disaster strikes, quick & effective action must be the STANDARD––not the EXCEPTION. It is imperative that @fema is removed from the bureaucratic labyrinth of @DHSgov & is re-designated to report directly to @POTUS. See the bill text of HR 2308 here: https://t.co/5dIqAsvmww https://t.co/5yWbAlzAn7”.
In another post on the same day, he stated: “.@fema is overly-bureaucratic, overly-politicized, overly-inefficient & CHANGE IS NEEDED. The bipartisan bill I’m co-leading to overhaul FEMA into an action agency–HR 2308–was officially added to HR 4669 & advanced out of committee by a vote of 57-3. This a big win for Florida. https://t.co/jEbS2ikmWA”.
Donalds further reiterated his position in a third post: “.@fema is an inefficient accounting agency lodged within the labyrinth of @DHSgov. FEMA must be able to take swift and decisive action to deliver relief in disaster scenarios. Our bill fixes this problem by removing FEMA from DHS & making FEMA report directly to @POTUS. https://t.co/sBxlpJOu5Y”.
Byron Donalds has represented Florida’s 19th District since 2021 after serving in the Florida House of Representatives from 2016 through 2020. He was born in Brooklyn, New York City in 1978 and currently resides in Naples. Donalds holds degrees from both Florida A&M University and Florida State University.
The legislative efforts referenced by Donalds are part of ongoing debates about how best to structure federal emergency response agencies for greater efficiency and responsiveness during disasters.
