(2009-0362-F) FEMA Employee Oral Histories

1017 pages, 55 files

This collection consists of oral interview transcripts of Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) employees recorded for the Clinton Administration History Project in 2000. Employees were asked to describe how they thought the public perceived the Agency, and what changes both good or bad had occurred during the Clinton Administration. Employees across the Agency were interviewed. There are 53 employees interviews, including the FEMA director, James Lee Witt.

The materials in FOIA 2009-0362-F are a selective body of documents responsive to the topic of the FOIA. Researchers should consult the archivist about related materials. FOIA 2009-0362-F consists of oral interview transcripts of employees from the Federal Emergency Management Agency recorded for the Clinton Administration History Project in 2000. The Clinton Administration History Project describes in detail the accomplishments of President Clinton and his advisors for the period 1993-2001. Each organization or agency within the Administration submitted a narrative history along with supporting documents. These narrative accounts are primarily overviews of the various missions, special projects, and accomplishments of the agencies. These FEMA oral history interviews describe individual employees’ professional story of how they came to work at FEMA and what their then current positions entailed. The employees were asked minimal questions in the interviews and were encouraged to discuss changes they had seen in the agency since President Clinton had appointed director, James Lee Witt to head the agency. They were also asked to describe memorable disasters and how the agency responded to disasters. Employees were asked to describe how they thought the public perceived the Agency, and what changes both good or bad had occurred during the Clinton Administration. Employees across the Agency were interviewed. There are 53 employees interviews, including the FEMA director, James Lee Witt. The responsive records were compiled from a CD-ROM and are made available on CD-ROM.

Textual

Records that are responsive to this FOIA request were found in one collection area – Clinton Presidential Records: Staff and Office Files. Staff and Office files were maintained at the folder level by staff members within their individual offices and documents all levels of administration activity. Staff and Office files are processed at the folder level, that is, individual documents are not selected and removed from a folder for processing. While this method maintains folder integrity, it frequently results in the incidental processing of documents that are not wholly responsive to the subject area.

Collection is open to all researchers. Access to Clinton Presidential Records is governed by the Presidential Records Act (PRA) (44 USC 2201) and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 USC 552, as amended) and therefore records may be restricted in whole or in part in accordance with legal exemptions.

Official records of William Jefferson Clinton’s presidency are housed at the Clinton Presidential Library and administered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) under the provisions of the Presidential Records Act (PRA).

Staff Archivist, February 2012. Previously restricted materials are added as they are released

The following is a list of documents and folders processed in response to FOIA 2009-0362-F:
Box 1
Clinton Presidential Records: Staff and Office Files
Electronic Records
Clinton Administration History Project
History of Federal Emergency Management Agency
[FEMA-Supplemental Materials] [FEMA Employee Oral Interview Transcripts]
[OA/ID 23856]