FEMA Said It Has Frozen Eaton Fire Recovery Funding as Government Shutdown Enters Second Week

The Federal Emergency Management Agency halted all non-emergency recovery work Sunday morning, freezing Public Assistance reimbursements for ongoing disasters — including the January 2025 Eaton Fire — as a partial government shutdown affecting the Department of Homeland Security entered its second week.

The freeze adds another obstacle to a recovery already marked by permitting delays, insurance disputes, and lead contamination concerns.

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced the cutbacks late Saturday, February 21, saying FEMA “is scaling back to bare-minimum, life-saving operations only,” according to a statement provided to CBS News.

The measures took effect at 6 a.m. ET on Sunday, February 22, according to the DHS.

FEMA’s grant systems had already been non-operational since the shutdown began on February 14, DHS said earlier.

FEMA’s Public Assistance program reimburses 75 percent or more of eligible state and local disaster costs, including debris removal, emergency protective measures and public infrastructure restoration, according to FEMA.gov.

For Altadena, that pipeline covers ongoing recovery from the Eaton Fire.  Under the new restrictions, only disasters requiring immediate emergency action to protect lives will receive FEMA attention, according to DHS.

Gregg Phillips, FEMA’s associate administrator for the Office of Response and Recovery, warned a House Appropriations subcommittee on February 11 that a shutdown would “severely disrupt FEMA’s ability to reimburse states for disaster relief costs.” He added: “States and communities will be forced to wait for long-term response work to continue,” according to Politico.

The partial government shutdown began February 14 after Congress failed to pass DHS funding amid a dispute over immigration enforcement oversight. DHS blamed congressional Democrats.

“This is the third time that Democrat politicians have shut down this department during the 119th Congress,” Noem said.

But Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, the top Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, said the administration was “purposely punishing the American people and using them as pawns,” according to CBS News.

Congress returned to Washington on Monday with no vote to end the shutdown immediately scheduled.

The Altadena Community Center at 730 E. Altadena Drive continues to operate as a FEMA and SBA resource center, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., according to the LA County recovery website. Residents who have applied for FEMA Individual Assistance should monitor their applications and contact FEMA at 1-800-621-3362.

“Full recovery and assistance operations will resume once funding is restored,” DHS said Sunday. No timeline has been announced.