DHS transfers FEMA staff to ICE amid hurricane season
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is temporarily transferring personnel from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) just ahead of the peak of hurricane season as it seeks to speed hiring for immigration officers.
DHS is detailing roughly 100 people from FEMA’s human resources and security teams to help process applicants at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) amid a bid to hire 10,000 extra officers.
“Under President Trump’s leadership and through the One Big Beautiful Bill, DHS is adopting an all-hands-on-deck strategy to recruit 10,000 new ICE agents. To support this effort, select FEMA employees will temporarily be detailed to ICE for 90 days to assist with hiring and vetting,” DHS said in a statement.
“Their deployment will NOT disrupt FEMA’s critical operations. FEMA remains fully prepared for Hurricane Season.”
The Washington Post first reported the move, which it said would impact roughly half of FEMA’s human resources team.
It’s not unusual for departments to detail employees from one agency to another, and ICE has previously helped with hurricane response. But usually such assignments are voluntary and not in the weeks when hurricane season is expected to accelerate.
FEMA’s human resources staff in particular serve a critical role alongside its security staff as the agency looks to swiftly hire local staff to respond to disasters.
FEMA is already down roughly 2,000 staffers both as the Trump administration culls the federal workforce and as employees flee the agency amid signals from the White House it plans to dismantle or otherwise reorganize the agency and leave more responsibility for disaster response to the states.
Meanwhile, DHS is speeding ahead with plans to hire additional ICE officers, announcing Wednesday it would scrap existing age limits.
Those interested in working as deportation officers at ICE must currently apply to do so before turning 40, while those seeking to do investigations must do so before turning 37.
“We are ENDING the age cap for ICE law enforcement,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Wednesday. “Qualified candidates can now apply with no age limit.”