Did these SC politicians vote against FEMA funding? Kamala Harris says so. Here’s what they say
Did all of South Carolina Republican House members and U.S. Sen. Tim Scott vote against FEMA funding?
Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign says they did. In a post on its X account and other social media platforms, Harris’ campaign gave a list of Republicans from different states who voted against the funding. The list included all of South Carolina’s Republican U.S. House members and Scott.
The post referenced a stopgap spending bill — called a continuing resolution — passed by Congress on Sept. 25 to keep federal government agencies funded into December and avoid a shutdown. All of South Carolina’s Republican U.S. House members and Scott voted against the resolution.
Passing spending bills has been a challenge for the current Congress, where the Senate is narrowly controlled by Democrats and the House is narrowly controlled by Republicans. Many House Republicans have opposed compromise spending bills because of concerns about immigration, deficit spending, and other issues.
When contacted by The State, most of the South Carolina politicians on the list described the post as a mischaracterization of their vote.
“The reporting you’re referring to is misleading and intentionally leaves out relevant details. Rep. Norman did NOT vote against FEMA funding. He voted against a continuing resolution, which continued government funding through December 20 and will most certainly result in a massive end of year omnibus spending bill,” wrote Annie Butler, communications director for 5th District Congressman Ralph Norman.
This sentiment was echoed by Scott, who voted against the bill “because he believes Congress should have stayed in town to pass individual appropriations bills instead of kicking the can down the road,” according his communications director, Demarion Johnson.
Scott has also called for Congress to come back into session to pass disaster relief legislation, Johnson said.
Seventh District Congressman Russell Fry wrote that Biden and Harris have politicized the funding bills.
“I believe FEMA plays a vital role in emergency preparedness and response. Unfortunately, the Biden-Harris White House, Senate Democrats, and House Democrats have all politicized funding bills that would have secured the aid that is desperately needed,” Fry’s office wrote in an email of his response. “I voted against the most recent continuing resolution due to the funding of programs that feed and house illegal immigrants through FEMA.”
Some Republicans have alleged that some money appropriated to FEMA for disaster relief has been diverted to illegal immigrants. FEMA has denied that.
“No money is being diverted from disaster response needs,” FEMA said in a statement posted to its website. ”FEMA’s disaster response efforts and individual assistance is funded through the Disaster Relief Fund, which is a dedicated fund for disaster efforts. Disaster Relief Fund money has not been diverted to other, non-disaster related efforts.”
Fry also said that he had voted for numerous bills that would have provided billions of dollars for FEMA.
Third District Congressman Jeff Duncan’s office also criticized the Harris campaign for politicizing the funding.
“Our hearts go out to all those affected by these catastrophic storms. The Harris campaign is politicizing the hurricanes and desperately trying to frame Republicans as uncaring and unsympathetic.”
Duncan’s office wrote that Republicans passed a Department of Homeland Security funding bill in June, at the beginning of hurricane season, providing $28.4 billion to FEMA and protecting those funds from going to “illegal immigrants.”
“The Democrat-led Senate chose not to act, making FEMA funding a political issue while American lives were at risk,” Duncan’s office wrote.
The bill Duncan was referencing was on June 28, 2024, the House passed H.R. 8752 – Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2025.
The bill provides $94.4 billion in discretionary spending for fiscal 2025 for the Department of Homeland Security and its operational components, including $28.4 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
It wasn’t the only instance where elected representatives argued that they had voted for FEMA funding in bills that were defeated, but later did not vote for it in the legislation Harris described.
“I have supported legislation multiple times this year which contained funding for FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund. Most recently, H.R. 9494 provided a total of $30.26 billion for Disaster Relief,” said 4th District Congressman William Timmons. “That bill failed when 206 Democrats voted against it, and President Biden even threatened to veto it... . if supplemental legislation is required to aid in these efforts, I look forward to returning to Washington to do what’s best for my constituents as we rebuild after Hurricane Helene.”
The White House said it opposed the bill because it would provide insufficient funding for several federal agencies for six months, threatening national security. The bill also did not address “key emergency funding needs.” The bill also contained a provision that would “make it much harder for all eligible Americans to register to vote and increase the risk that eligible voters are purged from voter rolls.”
Despite conspiracy theories circulating about FEMA in some parts of the far right, none of the legislators who spoke with The State criticized the federal agency.
Congresswoman Nancy Mace’s office said she “strongly” supports FEMA and emergency management efforts, but does not “back FEMA funding for illegal aliens or any other wasteful spending.”
Her office wrote that she co-sponsored H.R. 3777, the Disaster Assistance Fairness Act, which ensures housing cooperatives and condominiums receive the same FEMA disaster recovery assistance as other homeowners. She also co-led the National Disaster Safety Board Act of 2023, a bipartisan bill designed to study disasters and prevent future loss of life and damage.
“Mace remains committed to working across the aisle to fix what’s broken, make FEMA more effective, and ensure every American is better protected when disaster strikes.”
This story was originally published October 21, 2024 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Did these SC politicians vote against FEMA funding? Kamala Harris says so. Here’s what they say."