The Texas Legislature is in a special session and discussing proposals to improve disaster preparedness after floods killed more than 130 people early this month.

Local officials emphasized the need for river gauges and real-time rainfall monitoring to better predict flash floods.

David Richardson, the acting director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, defended the Trump administration’s handling of the recent catastrophic floods in Texas, insisting to members of Congress on Wednesday that recent policy changes did not slow the government’s response.