The Senate confirmed Cameron Hamilton as FEMA administrator and approved 74 of President Trump’s nominees, including David Cummins for TSA and Daniel Perez as ambassador to Brazil. Hamilton returns amid staffing losses, more than 1,000 open disaster declarations and controversy over proposed changes to federal disaster aid. He has pledged to defend FEMA’s mission while pursuing reforms to cut red tape and encourage cost savings. The administration’s reform push faces legal and political challenges, including lawsuits and partisan differences in disaster approvals.
Senate Confirms Cameron Hamilton To Lead FEMA; Clears 74 Trump Nominees
FILE - Cameron Hamilton testifies during a hearing to examine his nomination to be Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, June 17, 2026, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)(AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)
The Senate on Friday confirmed Cameron Hamilton as administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), approving a package of 74 nominees that also included David Cummins to lead the Transportation Security Administration and Daniel Perez as U.S. ambassador to Brazil.
Hamilton returns to FEMA after serving briefly as the agency's interim leader in January 2025. He was removed from that temporary post after publicly opposing proposals to eliminate FEMA; his confirmation signals that the administration may be backing away from that idea even as it pushes for major changes to federal disaster response.
Challenges on Day One
Hamilton will inherit an agency of more than 20,000 employees still reeling from leadership turmoil under former DHS secretary Kristi Noem. FEMA is managing more than 1,000 open disaster declarations amid an active summer season marked by destructive wildfires and flooding. A Government Accountability Office report noted that over 4,300 employees left FEMA in fiscal 2025, including more than 1,500 voluntary separations, producing a "loss of institutional knowledge and experienced personnel."
Promises and Priorities
During a June Senate committee hearing, Hamilton pledged to be an advocate for FEMA's workforce and to ensure the agency is "objective, fair and reasonable, follows the law, and is consistent in the approach to how we adjudicate and process claims and requests for disasters." He also argued that FEMA is burdened by bureaucracy and that the federal government must strike a new balance to encourage cost reasonableness and savings.
Supporters say Hamilton's willingness to defend FEMA — even at political cost — shows leadership when pressure is highest. Pete Gaynor, who led FEMA during the previous Trump administration, said Hamilton will focus on simplifying the recovery system for disaster survivors and removing red tape. The National Emergency Management Association also welcomed his confirmation. Still, some FEMA staff remain wary because of Hamilton's involvement in controversial decisions last year, including the cancellation of a multibillion-dollar resilience grant program.
FILE - People work at the Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters in Washington, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)(AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Policy Shifts and Political Tensions
Since Markwayne Mullin replaced Noem as DHS secretary in March, the department has moved to reverse some recent policies — for example, rescinding a rule that required any expense above $100,000 to be approved by the secretary's office, a requirement that had backlogged disaster aid. At the same time, a Trump-appointed FEMA Review Council recommended major changes to how the federal government supports states, tribes and territories during disasters; many of those recommendations would require congressional action.
Political controversy continues. An Associated Press analysis found that the White House approved roughly 80% of disaster requests from Republican governors but about 60% from Democratic governors, a point Democrats cite as evidence of politicization of disaster relief. Twenty-five states and the District of Columbia also sued the administration last month over new election-security conditions attached to FEMA counterterrorism grants.
Other Confirmations
Other nominees approved in the package include David Cummins as TSA administrator. Cummins, a former senior vice president at contractor Serco, takes over an agency still recovering from a partial government shutdown this year that left many TSA officers working for weeks without pay and prompted thousands to call out or quit. The administration has signaled interest in expanding private airport screening and reducing TSA headcount.
Daniel Perez was confirmed as U.S. ambassador to Brazil amid diplomatic friction: the State Department said Brazil's refusal to accept Perez's appointment was a key reason it revoked the visa of Brazil's ambassador to the United States this week, highlighting tensions between the two governments.
Outlook
Hamilton will be FEMA's first permanent administrator in President Trump's second term and faces the twin tasks of stabilizing a depleted workforce and implementing reforms sought by the administration and some governors that would shift more responsibility for disaster response to states. How quickly and how far those changes proceed will depend on what Hamilton can do within his authority and what Congress approves.
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