Evers Blasts FEMA Over Storm Aid Rejection, Vows To Fight For Funds
Governor says Trump administration is downplaying tornado and flooding damage from April storms.
A homeowner cleans up debris left behind from a storm in the village of Lisbon. Evan Casey/WPR
Gov. Tony Evers plans to appeal the federal government’s denial of public assistance for four Wisconsin counties that were affected by storms that hammered the state in April.
Thunderstorms, heavy rainfall and tornadoes hit the state that month, causing widespread damage and flooding. Evers requested public and individual assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency after the storms.
There were more than $20 million in “eligible disaster costs” following damage assessments from local, state and federal officials, according to a statement from Evers’ office.
President Donald Trump recently approved a “major disaster declaration” for the state. FEMA has approved individual assistance for residents of 19 Wisconsin counties, as well as for the Oneida Nation. FEMA also approved public assistance for nine counties and the Oneida Nation.
But in a recent letter, David Arnold, the acting associate administrator for FEMA’s office of response and recovery, denied the requests for assistance from Bayfield, Manitowoc, Marathon and Racine counties, saying damage there lacks the “severity and magnitude” that would warrant federal aid.
Arnold also wrote that the state’s request for the hazard mitigation grant program “is not warranted.” That program gives grants to communities “looking to protect against losses from disasters, and in advance of disasters,” according to FEMA’s website.
In a statement Tuesday, Evers called the denial a “slap in the face.”
“Donald Trump is basically telling Wisconsinites that millions of dollars in damages our communities have suffered due to tornadoes, storms and flooding isn’t bad enough or high enough,” Evers stated.
FEMA’s public assistance program can help communities pay for repairs to public infrastructure, according to FEMA’s website.
Evers said he will appeal the decision.
“We are going to continue to fight every day to get Wisconsin every cent we believe we are due,” Evers said in the statement. “We will be appealing this decision, and I implore FEMA to reevaluate their findings and grant Wisconsin’s full request expeditiously and without any further delay.”
The statement from Evers’ office said he is directing Wisconsin Emergency Management to “gather additional information and details on costs the public sector and certain private non-profit organizations incurred due to the April storms.”
The state has 30 days from July 8 — the date the state received the denial letter — to submit the appeal.
Debris from a severe storm covers a sidewalk Saturday, April 18, 2026, in Janesville, Wis. Angela Major/WPR
In a statement, state Rep. Calvin Callahan, R-Tomahawk, said he was “disappointed” about the denial of the public aid.
“Seeing the devastation of the storm in Ringle and Marathon County, it’s clear that those funds are needed by the community,” Callahan said in the statement.
“More help is needed from the federal government to restore infrastructure and prevent future damage,” he added. “I hope that FEMA approves Wisconsin’s appeal so the folks affected by the storm in April have the resources they need to rebuild their community.”
Meagan Quaderer, the director of Bayfield County Emergency Management, said the denial will have an impact on rural municipalities within the county.
“The denial here means that more of their local levy budget is going to be utilized to cover the cost from the storm damage we had this spring, (rather) than it going to something important like EMS service or fire response,” Quaderer said.
Manitowoc County Executive Tyler Martell said in a Wednesday statement that the county and municipalities in the county “incurred significant cost responding to historic flooding this past April,” and he supports the appeal.
In a statement, a spokesperson for FEMA said “the law and regulations require FEMA to review each request closely and consider the unique circumstances of disaster-caused damages as well as state and local capacity.”
The spokesperson said over $6 million in federal assistance was sent to residents of 19 Wisconsin counties and the Oneida Nation, “whose home(s) or property was damaged by the severe storms, tornadoes and flooding” from the April storms.
Milwaukee residents throw away items ruined by flooding at a drop off center in the city on Monday, Aug 11, 2025. Evan Casey/WPR
Evers also requested federal public assistance in late August 2025 for Door, Grant, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha counties to help with damages to public infrastructure after those communities were hit hard by a historic rainfall that led to widespread flooding.
Evers appealed after FEMA denied public assistance for those counties in the fall. FEMA denied that appeal in February.
Individual assistance was approved for residents of Wisconsin from those storms. Over $200 million in “Individuals & Households Program Dollars” has been approved from that storm, according to FEMA’s website.
Evers plans to appeal Trump admin’s denial of assistance to 4 counties hit by April storms was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
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