Why It Matters
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans, designs and constructs much of the nation’s federally funded flood risk management infrastructure, including dams and levees. Many of those structures were built more than 50 years ago and may be increasingly vulnerable to failure as disasters become more frequent and federal disaster assistance becomes more difficult to deliver.
The Corps generally does not request funding for disaster response during the annual budget process. Instead, it relies primarily on supplemental appropriations approved after disasters occur. From fiscal 2004 through fiscal 2025, Congress provided $450 million for disaster response through annual appropriations acts, compared with more than $60 billion through 19 post-disaster supplemental appropriations laws.
The Corps has also transferred approximately $910 million from other appropriations accounts into its Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies account since fiscal 2004. Corps officials told the Government Accountability Office that those transfers are reimbursed after Congress provides supplemental funding.
The Big Picture
From fiscal 2006 through fiscal 2025, the Corps spent more than $34 billion on disaster-related activities, including preparedness, emergency response and project repairs. Preparedness expenses included supplies, equipment, planning and training.
The expenditure data begins in fiscal 2006 rather than fiscal 2004 because that was when the Corps began using specific codes in its financial system to link spending to individual post-disaster supplemental appropriations acts.
Because the Corps has historically received “no-year” appropriations that remain available indefinitely, the agency does not have to spend disaster funding immediately. As a result, the more than $60 billion appropriated since fiscal 2004 exceeds the $34 billion in expenditures recorded beginning in fiscal 2006.
Political Stakes
The Corps’ dependence on supplemental appropriations means funding for disaster response and repairs is largely determined after damage has already occurred rather than through predictable annual budgeting. That structure allows Congress to respond to individual disasters but can create uncertainty over how quickly funding will become available for repairs and emergency work.
After disasters, the Corps assesses damage to flood risk management projects and may use the information to improve modeling, early warning systems and evacuation protocols. The agency has also relied on damage assessments when deciding whether to modify damaged projects to provide greater protection and improve resilience, including by raising levees.
The Corps’ Emergency Response to Natural Disasters program has exercised authority under Public Law 84-99 to modify several projects rather than merely restoring them to their previous condition.
What’s Next
The Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act of 2024 directed GAO to examine the Corps’ disaster preparedness and response activities. The resulting report analyzes how those activities have been funded since fiscal 2004 and how the Corps uses information about natural disasters when making decisions about flood risk management projects.
GAO reviewed budget requests, appropriations laws, Corps expenditure data, agency guidance and publicly available information about dams and levees. Investigators also visited relevant Corps facilities and interviewed agency officials.
The report does not include recommendations. Instead, it provides Congress with information about the Corps’ reliance on supplemental funding and its use of disaster assessments as lawmakers consider future water resources, infrastructure and disaster-response policy.
The Bottom Line
The Army Corps relies overwhelmingly on post-disaster supplemental appropriations rather than annual funding to prepare for disasters, respond to emergencies and repair damaged flood infrastructure. Congress provided more than $60 billion through emergency spending laws from fiscal 2004 through fiscal 2025, while the Corps recorded more than $34 billion in disaster-related expenditures from fiscal 2006 through fiscal 2025.
As dams and levees age, the Corps’ ability to use damage assessments to improve projects may help reduce future risks. But its dependence on funding approved after disasters occur leaves much of the nation’s flood infrastructure subject to an uncertain and reactive financing system.
Spot something wrong? Report an issue with this article