Washington Report – May 4, 2026

May 4, 2026

Following the U.S. Senate’s approval, March 27, of HR 7147, the Homeland Security Appropriations for FY26, the House and President approved the measure;
HR 7147 provides full FY26 funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including FEMA and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), through the remainder of the fiscal year;
Most DHS operations have been under a federal shutdown for 75 days;
The House has also approved a reconciliation budget resolution (S Con Res 33), previously approved by the Senate, that would fund the remaining agencies within DHS, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP);
It is not yet known when final approval of the measure to fund these agencies for three years will be scheduled.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Review Council will meet for the first time since late 2025 to discuss potential recommendations for the President to improve overall operations at FEMA;
The following actions are expected during the May 7 meeting:
- Presentation of draft final report
- FEMA Review Council deliberation
- Vote on draft final recommendations
The President established the council to assess FEMA through Executive Order (EO)14180, Council to Assess the Federal Emergency Management Agency;
For additional information about the meeting, CLICK HERE;
To attend the meeting virtually, email FEMAreviewcouncil@hq.dhs.gov by May 6;
Public comments on the final report will be accepted until June 8;
Include “Department of Homeland Security” and “DHS-2026-0067” when emailing comments.

FEMA has announced $1.1B in new funding opportunities for states, territories and Tribal Nations to help communities mitigate the negative impacts from flooding through FEMA’s Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) program, which provides funds to reduce or eliminate the risk of repetitive flood damage to structures and buildings insured by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP);
As a component of the FMA grant program, FEMA implemented the Swift Current Grant in 2022 to make expedited funds available after Presidentially declared flood disasters;
These funding opportunities are available from the National Flood Insurance Fund and through the enactment of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin testified before the House Appropriations Interior & Environment (I&E) Subcommittee, the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee last week on the agency’s FY27 budget;
During the I&E Subcommittee hearing, Chairman Simpson (ID-02) indicated Congress likely cannot accept the White House’s EPA budget;
In each hearing, Administrator Zeldin said EPA is looking into agency avenues to address the passive PFAS receiver issue but suggested legislative action is needed.

Government Affairs Media Manager Mark Shade and Sr. Government Affairs Manager Marty Williams will attend and present during the 2026 APWA Minnesota Chapter Spring Conference in Nisswa, MN.