An electric pole snapped during a summer storm.
A new bipartisan bill in Congress would streamline the Federal Emergency Management Agency and speed up delivery of crucial disaster relief funds. The Fixing Emergency Management for Americans (FEMA) Act of 2025 also preserves the agency’s Public Assistance (PA) program, which provides critical funding for electric cooperatives to restore power and rebuild their systems after natural disasters.
Without those funds, rebuilding would take much longer and raise costs sharpy for rural communities, says Josh Kramer, North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives (NDAREC) executive vice president and general manager.
When an electric cooperative service territory is included in a presidentially declared disaster area, FEMA may reimburse a co-op up to 75% of the allowed costs of replacing damaged and destroyed infrastructure.
Since 2000, North Dakota electric cooperatives have received more than $110 million in PA for approximately 50 natural disasters, according to NDAREC.
“The public assistance funding provided through FEMA is essential to serving the people and industries that provide food and energy security to our nation,” Kramer says. “Absent PA funding, many co-op members living in disaster-stricken areas would face significantly higher electric rates.”
BIG IMPROVEMENTS
America’s electric cooperatives have been strong advocates for improving FEMA while keeping the agency intact.
One key improvement in the FEMA reform bill would greatly reduce the amount of time it takes for co-ops to receive reimbursements from the agency, according to the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). Specifically, it would direct the FEMA administrator to reimburse a co-op for emergency work no later than 120 days after it submits a request. The president would first need to determine that at least 90% of estimated costs are eligible for reimbursement.
“That would be a huge change in the timeline,” says Will Mitchell, NRECA legislative affairs director. “Right now, most co-ops are waiting years for reimbursement.”
Another big improvement, he says, is co-ops would be allowed to build stronger, more resilient systems in the aftermath of disasters. Current regulations do not allow cooperatives to “build back better,” as they are only allowed to use FEMA funds to restore the system to the way it was before.
“Some of those poles have been standing in the open prairie for 50 years or more,” Kramer says. “Electrical infrastructure has come a long way, and allowing cooperatives to use FEMA funds to build back a more resilient electric system – that better withstands the next natural disaster – is a no-brainer. It’s a wiser use of public dollars and means greater electric resiliency for rural Americans.”
Bipartisan sponsors from the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee introduced the FEMA Act of 2025 on July 23. The committee is expected to have hearings on the bill after Congress returns from its summer recess in September. The panel will then vote on whether to send it to the full House for consideration.
“FEMA assistance is critical, and we support an effort to reform the delivery of these key resources,” Kramer says. “Reforming FEMA into a stronger, more responsive agency will help strengthen rural resilience, protect taxpayer dollars and ensure essential services are restored as quickly as possible after a disaster.”
