A FEMA crew skipped 11 homes in Florida that displayed signs supporting Donald Trump after Hurricane Milton, according to a federal watchdog report. Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General said the episode eroded public trust in FEMA’s ability to treat everyone impartially, offer unbiased and consistent assistance, and ensure equal access to resources and tools.
Marn'i Washington and the complaint
The watchdog said Disaster Survivor Assistance crews surveyed more than 744,000 homes and other locations after Florida’s back-to-back Helene and Milton storms, and that more than 555,000 locations were not contacted for reasons including private property signs or safety concerns. The report centered on Marn'i Washington, the crew leader who was fired after the incident, and said she repeatedly told subordinate crew members not to visit properties with Trump 2024 campaign signage.
In February 2025, the Office of Special Counsel filed a Hatch Act complaint against Washington. Hampton Dellinger said a federal employee clearly violates the Hatch Act by engaging in explicit partisan political bias or activity when on the job, and added that one of Congress's goals in passing the Hatch Act was to ensure that government programs are administered in a nonpartisan manner.
Deanne Criswell before House Oversight Committee in November
Deanne Criswell told the House Oversight Committee in November that Washington’s actions were unacceptable. She also said, “The evidence that I have seen so far shows that this was an isolated incident” and “It has not gone beyond what this one employee did.” FEMA later provided additional mandatory ethics training on the Hatch Act.
Marn'i Washington told NewsNation that she was being framed and that she was simply following orders. She also said, “I execute orders. I don’t create policy. I do not reinvent the wheel. My record shows that” as the complaint and the watchdog review moved through separate channels.
Florida and the Hatch Act
Ron DeSantis blamed Joe Biden’s administration for what he called the “blatant weaponization of government by partisan activists in the federal bureaucracy.” The watchdog’s finding now places the focus on how a disaster-response crew handled homes in Florida during a federal assistance effort that covered hundreds of thousands of locations.
The unresolved issue is what discipline, if any, followed the Office of Special Counsel Hatch Act complaint against Washington after FEMA’s internal action and the watchdog review.
