DHS head Kristi Noem refuted a CNN report that her requirement for personal sign-off on DHS contracts over $100,000 slowed emergency response to deadly Texas flooding.

Noem ordered that every FEMA contract and grant worth that exceeds $100,000 must cross her desk for approval, CNN reported in June. The latest reporting by the outlet insinuated that this rule “stripped [FEMA] of much of its autonomy” during the flood, which raged across at least six counties and killed over 120 people in the early hours of July 4.