1. United States
2. Md.
3. Letter

My district needs emergency preparedness funding now, before this Super El Niño peaks and before supply chain disruptions from the Strait conflict compound into a full-blown crisis. NOAA forecasters expect this El Niño to be the strongest on record, lasting through early 2027, with catastrophic flooding risks in the South and severe drought impacts in the North. That's not a future problem — it's arriving this winter. The compounding threat is what keeps me up at night. Disruptions to food, power, and water supplies are already straining communities, and a historic weather event on top of that is a recipe for disaster. The UN World Food Programme estimates El Niño alone could push 49 million more people into acute food insecurity globally. Our communities here at home are not immune. Pre-positioning emergency resources, shoring up water infrastructure, and funding local emergency management agencies must happen before the storm, not after. Vote to allocate emergency preparedness funding immediately. Communities that aren't ready will pay a far higher price than the cost of preparation.