The report finds that the feds are increasingly leaving local governments in limbo when it comes to climate disasters

Communities that ask for federal aid in the event of a climate emergency cannot count on the aid to arrive. This increasingly common reality was reviewed in a recent report by the Wisconsin Policy Forum, which focused on the state’s historic flooding last August and found that federal aid to rebuild public infrastructure damaged by record storms was insufficient.

The report took a detailed look at the Milwaukee area, where 14.6 inches of rainfall set Wisconsin’s all-time record for heaviest rainfall in a 24-hour period. “As a result, the Menomonee, Milwaukee and Kinnickinnic Rivers overflowed and stormwater flooded homes, streets, businesses and schools in low-lying areas. Recovery efforts continue today and have been expanded to address the effects of another powerful storm that hit the area in April 2026. ” These storms, which occurred earlier this year, also dumped record rainfall in Green Bay and Wausau and caused historic flooding along the basin Wolf River in Shiocton, New London and Porterfield. Scientists have long warned that Wisconsin would face an increased risk of flooding and stronger storms due to climate change, which President Donald Trump’s administration has downplayed and dismissed as a hoax.

August storms not only filled basements and damaged homes, but also caused extensive damage to roads, parks, bridges and other public infrastructure. In and around Milwaukee, there was damage to public property owned by the county, public schools, the city of Milwaukee and 18 other localities at least $34.7 million. That included $10 million each for the Milwaukee public school and sewer district, as well as $1.4 million in damages assessed by county officials, half of which was road-related damage. City officials estimated the damage at $1.7 million, plus $5 million in additional costs to spotless up the debris. Wauwatosa, one of the suburban municipalities surrounding Milwaukee County, estimated damage to city parks, roads and buildings at $6.8 million.

In total, August storms in the Milwaukee area left an estimated $240 million in damage to private and public property. Following the deployment of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Trump administration approved $210 million in aid to facilitate citizens recover but did not provide funds to support local governments, despite repeated requests from state and local leaders.

Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers immediately declared a state of emergency after the August storms, asking federal authorities to declare a major disaster in Milwaukee, Waukesha, Washington, Door, Grant and Ozaukee counties. According to a report by the Wisconsin Policy Forum, Evers asked for both individual and public assistance. During the statewide damage assessment, more than 26,000 individual damage reports were received. FEMA concluded that the 2025 flood was “severe enough to warrant a disaster declaration in Milwaukee, Waukesha and Ozaukee Counties, but authorized only assistance to individuals and concluded that assistance to public entities was not warranted due to the severity of the disaster,” the report said. “This meant that only individuals in those counties would be eligible for assistance, and governments did not receive assistance.”

The federal government rarely approves one form of disaster aid while rejecting another, according to the report, as only 2.7% of named disasters since 2000 resulted in individual aid approval but state aid denial. In 2008, when the Milwaukee area was hit by severe storms and flooding, the federal government approved $4.5 million in aid for local governments, as well as another $10.3 million for severe storms in 2010. “Milwaukee County also received $6.1 million to help cover costs associated with snow storm recovery since 2000.” – noted the Wisconsin Political Forum.

Earlier this month$22.6 million in aid was provided to several counties. President Trump used this amount to promote US Republican Tom Tiffany as a candidate for Governor of Wisconsin.

Local authorities tried to catch up, but at great cost. Typically, the state provides $1 million to $3 million to local governments to cover disaster costs, but in 2025 the damage was so extensive that $16.9 million was needed to cover damages claims, the highest annual amount on record since 2000. “This was due to both the magnitude of the August 2025 flooding and the denial of federal funding that could potentially cover at least some of these costs,” the report said. Nearly 46,000 residents of Waukesha, Washington and Milwaukee counties applied for individual assistance following the August storms, and as of June, assistance had been distributed to 36,800 eligible applicants.

Protection against the effects of climate change

Some local governments, including Milwaukee County they took up politics facilitate adapt to the effects of climate change. “The sewer district has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in flood protection systems in the area, including concrete infrastructure such as the Deep Tunnel system, as well as green infrastructure efforts such as wetland protection, reduction of hard surfaces such as concrete that produce runoff, and other methods of reducing the speed and volume of floodwaters,” according to the Wisconsin Policy Forum. According to the Political Forum, without these measures, the August floods could have been “much more serious.” “However, following two storms in the last 10 months, it is clear that there are still thousands of structures at risk of flooding in this area.”

Recovering from disasters causes difficulties. Increasing severe weather is likely to cause more disasters, even though, as the Policy Forum said, “the availability of federal disaster assistance is more difficult to predict.” When the federal government decides to reject local communities’ calls for facilitate, “state residents have limited options for action beyond petitioning FEMA and Congress for aid.”

The report recommends that state leaders allow additional funding for disaster relief from state tax revenues. Attempts by Evers and other lawmakers to take such action were previously rejected by the Republican-controlled Legislature. State and local leaders could also invest in flood protection and mitigation efforts and develop green infrastructure. Developing social insurance policies to address “these unpredictable and increasingly likely disasters” is another solution proposed by the Policy Forum.

“State and local leaders have limited control over when and where floods occur, but they can be prepared to respond when they do occur,” the report concludes. “They can also reduce flood risk by investing in infrastructure that slows, stores and redirects water.” Even these efforts can be overwhelmed by the scale of disasters. And since the federal government has demonstrated that for any reason, there is no guarantee that aid will arrive, Wisconsin will need to become “more self-sufficient” in responding to future disasters.