THOMASVILLE, Ga. – Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff said Tuesday he is “very confident” that federal officials are ready for the upcoming hurricane season.

Chertoff’s trip to south Georgia came as a key House lawmaker demanded specifics on staffing of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to ensure that enough experienced workers are on hand by the official June 1 start of the hurricane season.

The agency will at least come close to its goal of filling 95 percent of its vacancies by then, Chertoff said.

“We’re hiring as rapidly as we can, and we’re prepared to bring all the resources,” Chertoff said as he toured one of the agency’s two main communications centers in the hurricane states.

In a letter sent Monday to Chertoff and released Tuesday, Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., questioned FEMA’s recruiting and hiring efforts.

He asked what FEMA is doing to hire experienced managers in key hurricane strike zones. His letter noted vacancies in several crucial response roles.

Davis, chairman of the House government oversight committee, led a special inquiry on failures exposed by Hurricane Katrina. It concluded that local, state and federal officials lacked urgency in preparing for catastrophes. That left the Gulf Coast vulnerable and contributed to the deaths and suffering inflicted by Katrina, the panel found.

FEMA spokesman Aaron Walker said Tuesday that the agency has filled about 85 percent of its vacancies.