Three more FEMA employees were fired for deliberately skipping homes with Trump signs.
The Department of Homeland Security terminated three additional FEMA workers connected to a scandal involving the targeted bypassing of pro-Trump homes during disaster relief operations in Florida. The firings stem from a federal inspector general investigation that found a FEMA crew violated the Hatch Act and agency policy by skipping 11 homes in Lake Placid following Hurricane Milton in 2024.
Records showed workers repeatedly cited Trump-supporting signs at properties to explain why they had not visited. The latest dismissals follow the earlier firing of crew leader Marn’i Washington, who investigators say instructed her team to avoid homes displaying Trump campaign materials.
The misconduct took place while FEMA’s Disaster Survivor Assistance crews canvassed storm-damaged neighborhoods from late October through early November 2024. Those teams were tasked with visiting residents, identifying immediate needs, and connecting survivors with federal aid. Workers entered notes into agency records describing the political signs at properties they chose not to visit. The inspector general concluded that the crew’s actions denied those residents equal access to FEMA’s outreach program.
As originally reported, FEMA’s Office of Professional Responsibility conducted its own separate inquiry and determined the three newly dismissed employees had failed to meet the agency’s standards of conduct. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said disaster relief must be delivered regardless of a victim’s political beliefs, noting that lives can depend on the agency’s response. “The blatant abuse of power seen at FEMA under the Biden Administration was unacceptable, inhumane, and un-American,” Mullin said. “We’ve made sure that everyone responsible for this incident has been punished.”
FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton said President Trump had empowered the agency to hold those responsible accountable and reform its survivor outreach procedures. “Political bias has no room in public service,” Hamilton said.
The inspector general’s report placed the first documented instance of a skipped home tied to political signage on October 19, 2024. A note entered three days later read, “did not visit due to Trump flag.” Nine additional records citing political signs followed. Workers logged the skipped properties under vague categories such as “Not Able to Access Property” and “Private Property,” but the accompanying notes named Trump in all 11 cases.
Investigators blamed gaps in FEMA’s training, documentation, and supervision. Crews had not received Hatch Act or ethics instruction before deployment. Agency rules also did not require workers to explain why a property was skipped, and crew leaders were not required to review interaction records for accuracy or misconduct.
Washington denied that anti-Trump bias drove her order, telling the Washington Post she was trying to protect her team from hostile encounters at properties displaying threatening signage alongside Trump materials. Investigators determined that political signage was not a permissible basis for bypassing a home.
FEMA has since ended door-to-door survivor outreach entirely, shifting to fixed assistance locations selected with state and local officials. Hamilton said aid under the new model will be based on need, not politics.