IEM Insights

Twenty-five years after the attacks of September 11, 2001, the memories remain vivid. To mark this solemn anniversary, members of the IEM team shared their memories of that day and reflect on how 9/11 shaped their careers, their understanding of service, and the work they continue to do for communities nationwide.

If Mississippi had been able to deploy the tools established under the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, alongside the streamlined frameworks proposed by the FEMA Review Council, the State’s recovery from Hurricane Katrina might have looked fundamentally different.

Katrina changed the way the nation understood disaster preparedness, response, housing, and recovery. 21 years later, another major shift is underway with FEMA and HUD CDBG-DR. So, the question is urgent: If a Katrina-scale storm happened today, would the system work better?

The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act is now law, and it is set to reshape how communities recover from the worst disasters. For jurisdictions receiving Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds, that means faster, more predictable, more transparent recovery ahead.

The President’s FEMA Review Council released report outlines ten recommendations for restructuring federal disaster management. Among the most operationally significant is the proposal to replace the existing Individual Assistance (IA) program with the Framework for Accessible Individual Relief, or FAIR.

The FEMA Review Council’s RAPID proposal aims to overhaul the current Public Assistance program with a faster, more streamlined model. The goal is to move recovery dollars to communities much sooner.

The FEMA Review Council proposed a Rapid Response Resilience Program (R3P) mitigation framework to replace HMGP with a faster, state-led, two-phase funding model. This represents a broader shift toward simplified delivery, reduced federal involvement, and locally driven prioritization.

On May 7, 2026, the President’s Council to Assess FEMA released its long-awaited final report. The bottom line for state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) governments: you would be expected to pay significantly more, far sooner, with less federal support to fall back on. Here are the fiscal implications every budget leader needs to understand.

National Volunteer Month is an opportunity to recognize individuals who dedicate their time and expertise to strengthening their communities. IEM Program Manager, Kirsten Raschko, is one of those people.

The story of rural hospitals in America is being rewritten—and the authors are the hospitals themselves. That spirit of intentional growth is at the heart of what IEM Health does alongside our partners. We work with state agencies, healthcare administrators, and rural organizations to bring the administrative guidance, strategic oversight, and federal funds management expertise needed to turn vision into lasting community impact.