Noem demands more control over FEMA and Homeland Security funding, which could slow disaster response

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is tightening her grip on her department’s purse strings, ordering that every contract and grant over $100,000 must now cross her desk for approval, according to a memo exclusively obtained by CNN.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is tightening her grip on her department’s purse strings, ordering that every contract and grant over $100,000 must now cross her desk for approval, according to a memo exclusively obtained by CNN. The sweeping directive issued last week adds an extra layer of review for billions of dollars in funding across the Department of Homeland Security, which includes agencies such as US Customs and Border Protection, the Coast Guard, Secret Service and Federal Emergency Management Agency. It’s the latest in a string of moves the Trump administration has billed as rooting out waste and fraud but that could have wide-ranging implications for federal agencies, particularly DHS as it is charged with multiple mission sets including emergency response. Officials inside FEMA warn the new approval process could severely disrupt the distribution of emergency funds during natural disasters. With hurricane season already underway, multiple sources told CNN that Noem’s policy threatens to bog down FEMA’s rapid-response efforts – and could choke off critical aid when every second counts. One FEMA official directly involved in disaster response called the policy “a dramatic and unprecedented overreach” and contends that Noem “is effectively preventing the department from functioning.” “This will hurt nonprofits, states, and small towns. Massive delays feel inevitable,” said the official who asked not to be named to speak candidly.