Hello, this is Congressman John D. Dingell and welcome to my podcast. This week we mark the one year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, and the damage it did to the shores of the Gulf Coast.

Like millions of Americans, I watched with great dismay as thousands of Gulf Coast residents were stranded without food, shelter, or water. None of us will ever forget the scenes of people baking on their rooftops calling out for the nation to help them as their houses were filled with flood waters. Yet, we could only stand and watch. We were all powerless to aid them at the hour they most needed our help.

Shamefully, this government was powerless too. Key decisions were made too late. Requesting Department of Defense assistance was too slow. Operational capabilities and readiness had declined or were inadequate, or, worse, did not exist.

In short, our government was unprepared to provide the proper emergency response for this type of disaster. Not only were the Federal Emergency Management Agency's supplies unable to meet demands in the Gulf Coast, but ineffective communications between FEMA and the local, state, and other federal agencies prevented survivors from accessing the few resources that were available immediately after the storm.

Unfortunately, very little has been done to ensure that America is prepared should a natural disaster of this magnitude strike our nation again. First, we have still not taken FEMA out of the Department of Homeland Security. It never belonged there in the first place, and was stuck in for political reasons. Since FEMA was placed in the large bureaucracy of DHS, it lost its focus of its core mission: coordinating preparedness and response to disasters.

Immediately after the storm, I introduced the National Emergency Management Improvement Act to take FEMA from DHS and restore it to what it had once been: a fully independent agency, headed by a professional reporting directly to the President. This would emulate the formula that made FEMA so successful under President Clinton and Director James Lee Witt. Although a professional has been appointed to head FEMA, little movement has been made on the legislative front to remove the agency from the bowels of DHS. This is inexcusable.

Second, we must invest our resources in the right priorities like housing, education, transportation, telecommunications, and health care infrastructure. While there has been some progress on this front, it is important that it is accomplished expeditiously with firm oversight in place to root out any fraud and abuse during the rebuilding effort. We must make sure of our promises to the citizens of the Gulf Coast. They must be kept.

Third, we must ensure that our first responders have the resources they need as we plan for future natural disasters. Unfortunately, New Orleans's grants for security and disaster preparedness were cut in half for this year. This is unconscionable.

Hurricane Katrina was the most destructive natural disaster in U.S. history. It has had a profound impact on our nation, economically, environmentally, and socially. As time passes we must not forget the victims who are still struggling to rebuild all they have lost.

This is Congressman John D. Dingell. Thank you for listening.