Funding cuts to FEMA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have Houston-area leaders preparing to pick up the slack in the event of a hurricane, Harris County Commissioner Lesley Briones said Friday.

Ahead of hurricane season's first day Sunday, Briones joined U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher (D-Houston) and local emergency leaders to address the federal cuts under President Donald Trump and highlight the steps individuals can take to prepare.

"I'm here to sound the alarm about something I think is even more dangerous than a forecasted storm," Fletcher said. "That is the possibility of facing one without the tools and resources that we need to get through it together. ... Cutting funding and staff for these agencies isn't just shortsighted and a bad idea, it's reckless."

Fletcher warned that cuts to NOAA, which oversees the National Weather Service, could impact the speed that information is delivered to the public ahead of a storm.

"Too often," Fletcher said, "we've found out the hard way that timely warnings and clear coordination between state, local and federal government and emergency responders are not luxuries – they are lifelines for people in need."

Fletcher was one of 38 members of Congress to author a letter earlier this month pushing for renewed appropriations funding for shuttered research divisions at NOAA. The letter was sent to the chair and ranking member of the congressional subcommittee overseeing federal agencies.

Briones reiterated Fletcher's warning and pushed the need for families and Houstonians to prepare before a storm hits.

"I'm deeply concerned about the changes to the National Weather Service and FEMA, because this is a team effort," Briones said. "The fundamental responsibility of government is to keep the community safe. ... I hope the Trump administration steps up and makes responsible decisions moving forward with regard to disasters, but in the meantime, we're tripling down, because here locally it will be up to us to respond. "

The 2025 hurricane season, which spans from June through November, has been forecasted by researchers at Colorado State University and NOAA to be above average, with an estimated 13-19 storms expected in the Atlantic. NOAA predicts 3-5 of those will be major hurricanes, and CSU researchers forecast a 33% chance that a major hurricane will make landfall along the U.S. Gulf Coast.

With another potentially major season approaching, a Rice University survey found that only 8% of Harris County residents say they feel "very well-prepared" for a disaster. Residents interviewed had completed an average of 4 of the 10 FEMA-recommended preparedness actions.

As the season begins, with fewer federal resources than in prior years and an anxious public, local leaders are taking steps to intervene early. Precinct 4 officials have worked with contributors to establish programs providing air-conditioning units to Harris County residents and are hosting nearly a dozen hurricane preparedness workshops at community centers around the precinct.

"What I hope all of us can do with our families is prepare, prepare, prepare," Briones said. "Come to these workshops, make an evacuation plan ... have an emergency kit ... stay informed."

Briones also promoted a county regulation passed in January that requires senior living facilities to maintain generators. The regulation was approved in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl, which saw 44 senior living facilities and nursing homes lose power last July. Briones said the majority of the county's facilities have already installed their generators ahead of the 2026 deadline.

Beryl, a category 1 hurricane that passed almost directly over Houston, caused widespread and prolonged power outages along with more than 40 deaths in the region.

Information on hurricane preparedness and local resources, including emergency kit checklists and evacuation route details, is available through NOAA and the Harris County Precinct 4 website.

Read this article in Houston Public Media.