There is a lot of talk about "getting rid" of FEMA. That's a dog that's been walked back before (in the early 90s), and it will be walked back again - it already is with a new tone of "streamlining" it instead of getting rid of it. I agree with getting rid of the red tape since there is too much of it but its mission and value otherwise are too important to get rid of.
FEMA, when not responding to disasters by augmenting resources on the ground with very experienced teams, spends a lot of time training local government about mitigation and preparedness actions. They issue a lot of grants to enable mitigation and preparation activities to take place. Local government budgets will not allow for all the spending that would be necessary to "disaster-proof" itself when competing with other interests and FEMA grant money is an enabler. When responding to disasters, they also help with giving out money as part of the recovery for citizens and the local government as well (businesses have access to the Small Business Administration to help with financial recovery and preparatory mitigation efforts).
When the local government is prepared and has taken action to be ready, everyone in the community benefits. The local government can create working groups with the local businesses and spend the FEMA grant money on programs that help the small businesses in the community to be prepared. When the recovery process moves smoothly and things are paid for, businesses also benefit from that as well (think of roads that were destroyed or debris is around, the fixing and removal gets paid for by grant money). When people are able to access your business thanks to clear roads, that helps. All of this funding is taxpayer money and it gets funded by (and added to as needed) by Congress.
If you're asking why FEMA isn't used more in peaceful times (you likely only hear/think about them when a disaster strikes), FEMA has an inability to market and advertise their resources and services well. When no one knows about the information, it isn't getting used. There are wonderful training programs, but if the local government isn't doing the training, there is a lot of "I had no idea that was available to me!" Also, the FEMA-sponsored website Ready.gov has very low traffic. It almost justifies shutting it down, but the information contained within is so valuable (go check for yourself - there is a tab specifically for businesses!).
If you're wondering "how did FEMA get so "bad"?", well, it was a great organization at the start of 2001. Then 9/11 happened. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was quickly created as a reaction to 9/11 and FEMA was thrown under DHS. It was no longer a cabinet position with its own budget and ability to advocate for itself. DHS gutted FEMA's budget and re-allocated disaster preparation and mitigation funds to anti-terrorism. The priority was anti-terrorism and natural disasters came dead last (that's not hyperbole: the mission and priorities of DHS had "natural disasters" in the last bullet point). FEMA has struggled under DHS ever since, even with some good years.
FEMA is getting a lot of blame for things it is not responsible for. It is hamstrung by a bevy of issues and outside factors. When it works well (google Project Impact and, wow, you'll learn how the program helped communities take early action with the help of businesses to prepare for disasters that actually hit them later), it does what it's intended to do: enable us to all be better...in advance. Businesses are an integral part of community resilience and recovery. Go explore what's available from them. All for free.
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