In the past few weeks, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has conducted polygraph tests on approximately 50 employees, including the acting administrator of FEMA and around twelve officials at the disaster relief agency. This is part of a growing initiative to identify and eliminate the alleged leaks of national security information within the department.
Cameron Hamilton, the acting FEMA Administrator chosen by President Donald Trump, underwent a polygraph shortly after attending a private meeting with top DHS officials to discuss the future of FEMA and the possibility of dismantling the agency in the near future. The closed-door session was covered by several news sources.
Multiple sources with knowledge of the situation have confirmed that a FEMA official was put on administrative leave and escorted out of the agency’s office this week following the administration of a polygraph test.
“We are agnostic about your standing, tenure, political appointment, or status as a career civil servant — we will track down leakers and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in an email to the media.
The DHS investigations have sparked worries that lie detector tests could be administered to federal employees suspected of leaking non-classified information to the media, specifically at FEMA where classified information is reportedly only handled in rare situations. Whistleblower advocacy groups have informed several news sources that it would be unusual, concerning, and possibly against the law for these tests to be utilized in these instances.
One FEMA official, who declined to be identified out of fear of retribution, said: “They’re going after rank-and-file employees and instilling this culture of fear.”
Various investigations involving the use of polygraphs to look into unauthorized leaks of classified and national security information have been initiated by the Trump administration, specifically at DHS and the Department of Defense.
Some FEMA officials “failed” the test, McLaughlin said, declining to provide details on what information was allegedly leaked. She insisted DHS is following the law.
“We will take appropriate action and, in some cases, refer some for criminal prosecution based on additional evidence found,” McLaughlin said in an email.
McLaughlin said Hamilton’s polygraph cleared him. Hamilton remains in his job. Politico first reported he was administered the test.
The FEMA official told news agencies that the idea DHS is only testing workers accused of leaking classified information is “extremely farcical” based on knowing some of the people who were given the tests and the positions they hold.
“They are just covering up the unpopular stuff they’re doing,” the official said. “FEMA is a consumer of classified information, not a producer of classified information, and the FEMA programs that are truly classified are all an extremely small group of people.”
A second FEMA official called the tests “a witch hunt.”
“I find it very, very hard to believe that within the normal course of business, any of these employees had their hands on classified material,” the official said. “They are trying to incite fear. They are trying to get rid of people.”
Tom Devine, who serves as the legal director for the Government Accountability Project, a non-partisan, nonprofit organization that supports whistleblowers, expressed his surprise at the high number of polygraphs conducted in the initial months of the Trump administration.
“Government agencies for decades, have used lie detectors to catch leakers or anyone else they perceived as wrongdoers. The difference here is the volume,” Devine said. “What used to be a sensitive, carefully considered high-risk decision, is now a knee-jerk reaction, and that’s what’s scary.”
As CNN previously reported, experts have questioned the validity of polygraphs, as they are subject to coercion and can be unreliable, and they are often inadmissible in court.
Against a backdrop of increasing tension between FEMA’s employees and the Department of Homeland Security, which supervises the disaster relief agency, the tests are being conducted. Trump and his supporters have criticized FEMA for months, alleging the agency is biased, inefficient, and redundant. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has pledged to “eliminate FEMA.”
Noem, the Department of Homeland Security, and the DOGE initiative led by Elon Musk are looking to make significant reductions at FEMA. FEMA employees were recently given the option of voluntary separations and early retirement as part of the most recent version of the Deferred Resignation Program.
Several FEMA officials have informed the press that they anticipate the proposition will prompt a significant number of personnel to leave the disaster relief organization as morale continues to plummet amid escalating chaos. There are concerns that this could potentially hinder the agency’s effectiveness in responding to storms during the upcoming hurricane season.
“Far more employees are considering or taking the [voluntary resignation offers],” the first FEMA official said. “You have the potential for a ton of institutional knowledge to walk out the door, and then you have a double whammy if you don’t have enough manpower to meet the mission, even if it’s an average hurricane season.”
According to news sources, the chaos within FEMA is already impacting the agency’s hurricane readiness. A FEMA official cautions that if the US experiences a storm season similar to last year, with Hurricanes Helene and Milton hitting the Southeast one after the other, response teams and resources may be overwhelmed.
Lee Ho