Fiscal watchdogs cite problems in handling disaster aid


By MARK BALLARD and MICHELLE MILLHOLLON

The handling of the first federal disaster relief money to arrive in the wake of Hurricane Katrina was riddled with improprieties, Louisiana's three top fiscal watchdogs say.

The process that granted $219 million in aid was fraught with irregular accounting, sloppy records and little oversight, they say.

State and local agencies will receive another $457 million this morning.

State Treasurer John Kennedy, Legislative Auditor Steve J. Theriot and state Inspector General Sharon Robinson stopped short of calling it fraud. But each says the way the money was awarded on Sept. 16 was so shoddy that the allegation may rise in the years that come.

All three blame the Federal Emergency Management Agency for failing to follow its own procedures and tossing out packets of money with little accounting.

"The FEMA people were over-zealous. They put these things on those forms, perhaps imprudently, so they could get the money out quickly," Theriot said.

"I don't want to suggest that it was monumental. But it would soon become so, considering the amount of money we're looking at down the road," he said.

Louisiana's congressional delegation is seeking $250 billion in federal money to help Louisiana get back on its feet after the storm hit on Aug. 29.

The seven packets of applications for the initial $219 million federal payment were processed without supporting documentation, proper signatures and identification numbers. Further, federal money was spent on work that was nowhere near completion.

In response, the three state fiscal officials instituted new procedures for supporting aid applications. And they "embedded" accountants with the disaster assistance teams to ensure the requests are properly documented.

Theriot said he already has met with U.S. Comptroller General David Walker to discuss how to address his concerns.

The Government Accountability Office, an investigative arm of Congress that oversees public funds, is initiating a review of FEMA's preparedness and response to the storm, said spokesman Paul Anderson.

FEMA officials don't disagree with the criticisms, saying that the agency initially tried to distribute the funds as fast as possible. That will change in the future as the needs become less urgent.
"We're not requiring the same level of documentation right now as we will down the road," said Brett Hansard, a FEMA disaster worker from Los Angeles who is working at the agency's Baton Rouge field office.

But FEMA does not supply the only members of the team that reviews requests for accuracy. Employees of the state Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness jointly fill out the forms with FEMA.

Major General Bennett C. Landreneau, who is the adjutant general for Louisiana and OEP director, did not return three calls Thursday.

Days after the storm, FEMA began processing the paperwork necessary to start the flow of money from the federal government to state and local agencies.

FEMA coordinators and OEP personnel helped state and local agencies fill out project worksheets that are supposed to detail damages, the cost and the scope of the work.

In the initial batch of seven worksheets, the only thing that varies from one project to the next is the cost. The description of damage dimensions is virtually the same -- almost word for word -- for each agency.

For instance, the State Police, like Lafourche, Orleans and St. Tammany parishes, sought money for "extensive response actions to alleviate immediate threats."

The State Police, however, had used much of its $340,030 to purchase boots for troopers and officers from other states helping with security.

The money was supposed to be reimbursements for actual expenses. That prevents an agency from later having to return money it didn't spend, Robinson said. Instead of documenting payments local governments already had made, FEMA approved cash based on estimates.

Robinson traces the problem to FEMA hiring people from outside the agency to do the paperwork. "They're contracting folks in to do a lot of this, and I don't know that a lot of them know what the rules are," she said.

At least three parish officials said FEMA only asked them for an estimate of how much money they needed.

"At first we gave them $5 million and they said, 'No, you have to be more realistic,' " said Kim Salter, assistant chief administrative officer for St. Tammany Parish. FEMA came in two days after the storm and asked for estimates.

Salter said she had the impression that the agency didn't have the time to deal with specifics. "Those days were nuts," she said.

St. Tammany received $323,609 in the first batch of aid.

The eye of Katrina passed over St. Tammany Parish, generating 6 million cubic yards of debris and flooding houses in Slidell to the roof-tops.

The parish spent $2.6 million to clear roadways. Picking up the rest of the debris could top $100 million, Salter said.

Lafourche Parish received $6.6 million from FEMA and is unsure whether it will spend all of it.
Parish Risk Manager Seth Holloway said the $6.6 million was officials' attempt at a good estimate. So far, the parish has only calculated about $300,000 in expenditures for materials, he said.

Most of the parish's expenses are for shelters, food for the National Guard and evacuees, gas and the use of school buses to take people from New Orleans to Thibodaux and Larose, he said.
Plaquemines Parish, where the hurricane made landfall, received $4.3 million from FEMA.

"That's just a rough estimate," said Jesse St. Amant, the parish's director of homeland security. "No one knows how much these things cost."

St. Amant said FEMA made it clear it wanted an estimate.

Once the applications are approved by FEMA, the federal money is deposited in the state's checking account, which is called the central depository account.

Treasurer Kennedy, who manages state funds, balked at signing the checks without better documentation.

Kennedy said Blanco administration officials told him to "just sign the checks."

Kennedy, Theriot and Robinson have instituted new accounting procedures, including acting as a watchdog over the worksheet process. State auditors are now "embedded" at FEMA's Baton Rouge headquarters to watch the worksheets as they're processed.

The objective, Robinson said, "is to make sure the agencies are using reasonableness in what they're asking for and make sure documents are prepared accurately."

"The situation in Louisiana is that the perception is almost as important as the reality," Kennedy said.

"This is an extraordinary chance for Louisiana to overcome its reputation. I think we ought to seize the opportunity and, besides, that money is meant for the people who have been hurt by this hurricane, not for the profiteers."

Winter's coming!! Get ready for the story of the year!!

Let me give you a little preview into one of the big stories this winter. Natural gas prices. It's another one of those pesky little supply-and-demand problems brought on in part by a few devastating hurricanes in the Gulf. In just a few months from now you're going to hear some griping about natural gas prices such as you've never heard before. We're ALL going to be paying MUCH higher prices, I'm afraid. We, here in Nebraska have been worrying ourselves sick over the rights to some underground water. We're squabbling with our neighboring states of Wyoming and South Dakota, and even California and Arizona over those rights. We need to redirect our focus. Natural gas must be our new focus. Environmentalists be DAMNED!!

In the meantime, . . . just where do you think some of our biggest untapped reserves of that all-important natural gas might be?? You got it!! Right there in the gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida. If you look at a map showing the locations of gas and oil rigs in the gulf, you'll see them off the coast of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. But when you get to the Florida coastline, . . . it stops. Florida, you see, is special. Florida is politically sensitive. Florida has a big tourist industry that depends on beaches. They don't want any oil or gas rigs offshore because, as we all now, they really do foul up the beaches. Why, there's not a day that goes by that we don't hear about rescue personnel having to scrub oil off of beachgoers in from Texas all the way to Alabama.

Don't you folks in Florida think it's about time to grow up and become part of the solution instead of part of the problem?? Even though we haven't heard a word from any of you, about our water rights issues, we're ALL in this energy boat together. Not everyone can escape the cold weather in the North to move to balmy Florida in the winter. Some of us Northern Americans still actually have to heat our homes, most of them with natural gas.

Hey, . . . . I have a nicely heated home on East coast of Nebraska, with a wonderful view of an unspoiled Missouri river beach. Maybe if I moved it all to Florida, the sight of a few rigs many miles offshore wouldn't spoil my enjoyment of my new Florida home. Of course, I could sell my furnace to some poor sap, stuck in in the Cornhusker State.

Seriously, folks, we need to encourage Florida join the rest of the gulf coast in addressing this country's energy needs.

Oh, and by the way, . . . and let's get those drilling rigs operating in ANWR while we're at it.

God Bless,
Dan'L

Bush to Trade Commisssion: "Find out what's going on!"

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether gasoline prices were illegally increased after Hurricane Katrina and if oil companies have constrained refinery capacity to keep fuel prices high, an agency official told Congress on Wednesday.

"We are continuing our intense scrutiny of conduct in the petroleum industry in the aftermath of Katrina," John Seesel, FTC associate general counsel for energy, told the Senate Commerce Committee at a hearing on gasoline prices.

"The FTC will proceed aggressively against any violations of the antitrust and consumer protection laws that it enforces," he said.

U.S. oil companies have adamantly denied that they have acted to push up gasoline prices or reduce supply.

Energy legislation signed into law this summer before Katrina struck the Gulf Coast required the FTC to probe whether gasoline prices have increased due to reduced refining capacity.

But Seesel said the agency's investigation will also look into the jump in pump costs after Katrina.

The national retail price for gasoline jumped 46 cents to a record $3.07 a gallon during the week after Katrina hit. The pump price has fallen 28 cents since then to $2.79 this week.

"The FTC is acutely aware of the pain that high gasoline prices that we have experienced recently has caused American families and businesses," Seesel said.

Governors from eight states on Tuesday asked the Bush administration and Congress to investigate profiteering or price gouging by the major oil companies after Katrina.

"The Commission is committed to maintaining competitive markets in refined petroleum products," Seesel told the committee.

Separately, an official with the Government Accountability Office said recent retail gasoline prices have risen faster than crude oil prices.

This goes against the historical trend of when "major upward and downward movements of crude oil prices are generally mirrored by movements in the same direction by gasoline prices," said Jim Wells, GAO director of natural resources and environment issues.

That supports a claim made by the eight governors, who also said the jump in motor fuel costs was much more than the increase in crude oil prices.

The price of crude accounts for about half the cost of making gasoline.

Seesel said there will be some "adverse effect" on gasoline prices until offshore oil production rigs and onshore refineries damaged by Katrina are repaired, which he said is "a process that could take months."

Four major oil refineries remain shut and a large chunk of oil production in the Gulf of Mexico is still offline due to damage from Katrina which slammed into Louisiana and Mississippi three weeks ago.

Now with the approach of Hurricane Rita, which has strengthened into a Category 4 storm, oil and gas companies have evacuated thousands of their workers from oil rigs and production platforms in the Gulf. Some refineries are also shutting down.

In Katrina I Didn't See Racism, I Saw Brotherhood

by Rabbi Aryeh Spero

In New Orleans, beginning Tuesday morning, August 30, I saw men in helicopters risking their lives to save stranded flood victims from rooftops. The rescuers were White, the stranded Black. I saw Caucasians navigating their small, private boats in violent, swirling, toxic floodwaters to find fellow citizens trapped in their houses. Those they saved were Black.

I saw Brotherhood. New York Congressman Charlie Rangel saw Racism.

Yes, there are Two Americas. One is the real America, where virtually every White person I know sends money, food or clothes to those in need -- now and in other crises -- regardless of color. This America is colorblind.

The other is the America fantasized and manufactured by Charlie Rangel, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, who constantly cry "racism!" even in situations where it does not exist, even when undeniable images illustrate love, compassion and concern. These three men, together with today's NAACP, want to continue the notion of Racist America. It is their Mantra, their calling card. Their power, money, and continued media appearances depend on it.

Often, people caught up in accusing others of sin neglect to undergo their own personal introspection. They begin to think they alone inhabit the moral high ground. It is high time these men peered into their own hearts at the dark chamber that causes this unceasing labeling of their fellow Americans as "racist." They may find in that chamber their own racism -- against Whites.

There is only one real America. Beginning Friday morning in Houston, thousands of regular citizens poured into the Astrodome offering water, food, clean clothes, personal items, baby diapers and toys, love and even their homes to the evacuees who had been bused in from New Orleans. Most of the givers were White, most of those being helped were Black. But there was Jesse Jackson, busy on TV, accusing the country of not putting Blacks --i.e., him -- on some type of Commission he is demanding. Where was he early in the week? Not sweating with others from around the country who had scraped their last dollar to come help. With Jesse, it's always about Jesse.

After decades of hearing accusations from Jesse, Al, Charlie, the NAACP and certain elitists about how racist America is, it would have been refreshing to hear them for once give thanks to those they for years have been maligning. These self-anointed spokesmen for the Black community lead only when it comes to foisting guilt and condemnation, and not when it comes to acknowledging the good in those they have made a career in castigating.

As a Rabbi I have a message I wish to offer to my fellow members of the cloth, Reverends Jackson and Sharpton: It is time to do some soul searching. Your continued efforts to tear this country apart, even in light of the monumental goodness shown by your White brothers, is a sin.

There are no churches in the world like the American churches. And there are no better parishioners and members of churches anywhere in the world. These churches are saving the day. Their members -- infused by the special and singular teachings of our unique American Judeo-Christian understanding of the Bible -- are, at this moment, writing an historic chapter in giving, initiative, and selflessness. They are opening their homes to strangers. They are doing what government is incapable of doing.

America works because of its faith-based institutions. It always has. That is what makes it America.

So next time the ACLU tries to diminish and marginalize the churches, saying there is no role for religion in American public life, that an impenetrable wall must be erected separating the citizens from their faith, cry out "Katrina."

Next time the ACLU goes to court asking that U.S. soldiers not be allowed to say Grace in the Mess Hall and that communities be forbidden from setting up a nativity scene, ask yourself: without the motivation of Goodness sourced in Faith, would people offer such sacrifice? Where else does this Brotherhood come from but the Bible which teaches "Thou Shall Love Thy Neighbor as Yourself."

I saw brotherhood on Fox News, where 24/7 reporters used their perch as a clearing-house for search-and-rescue missions and communication between the stranded and those in position to save. In contrast, the Old-line networks continued with their usual foolish, brain-numbing programming. Those who always preach "compassion" chose profit over people.

The New York Times has utterly failed America. Its columnists could have used their talents and word skills to inspire and unite a nation. Columnists such as Frank Rich and Paul Krugman, however, revealed their true colors by evading their once-in-a-lifetime chance to help and instead chose to divide, condemn, and fuel the fires and poison the waters of Louisiana. In them, I saw no Brotherhood. The newspaper always preaching "compassion" verifies Shakespeare's "They protest too much."

Similar elitists here in the northeast and on the west coast have over the years expressed their view of the South as "unsophisticated" and Texans as "cowboys." Well, the South has come through, especially Houston and other parts of Texas, whereas, as I write this on Labor Day, the limousine moralizers are lying on east and west coast beaches thinking they're doing their part by reading Times' editorials and calling George Bush "racist." How sanctimonious life becomes when proving you are not a racist depends not on living in a truly integrated neighborhood, but by simply calling others racist.

Like so often in history, facts trump platitudes. Reality reigns. Those who always preach brotherhood, thus far have acted devoid of it. Those who for decades have been accused by elitists of not having compassion are the ones living it. They are: the churches, the military, and the sons and daughters of the South.

Rabbi Spero is a radio talk show host, a pulpit rabbi, and president of Caucus for America. He can be reached at http://www.caucusforamerica.com/.

THEY DANCED WITH WHO BRUNG THEM

During the past week I read story after story about how so many of New Orleans' middle and upper income residents were able to flee the city as Katrina approached, but the poor were left to fend for themselves.

I even wrote the following letter to the Daily Nonpareil concerning this terrible development:

“What's really behind all the chaos in New Orleans? A question I've pondered, while reading several recent Daily Nonpareil stories.

Why didn't the people in the Superdome make any effort to organize themselves? Why didn't they at least try to clean the squalor they had created? Why didn't groups of men patrol the restrooms to prevent rapes?

We have gone a long way in the past 50 years to creating a dysfunctional society where self reliance, pride in one's self and a sense of right and wrong are no longer esteemed or even valued. We have allowed our government and media to say to people that you are not at fault for what you do. You are victims, little children who can't look after yourselves. It is the government’s responsibility to take care of
you.

We have told our minorities that everything that goes wrong is the result of
racism. That you cannot succeed in a racist society. We have told the
dysfunctional that we will look after you no matter how egregiously you
act.

We have excused crime saying that poverty creates crime, when we all
instinctively know that it is the crime that creates poverty. We have told young
women that it okay to have babies without fathers. There is no stigma attached -
in fact if you have a baby we will shower you with money and benefits so you can
move out of your parent's house and have even more babies. Even if this
guarantees your babies will be raised in poverty. We have told young men that it
is okay to father as many children as you can. The government will assume the
father's traditional role and look after the mother and babies. And most
importantly, we have called morals old fashioned and judgmental.

What right does society have to say that something is right or wrong? And what have we gotten for this? (not to mention the $1 trillion we have spent on the poor)
Citizens who, at the first sign of trouble, stand around bewildered. You see it
on the news. Faces screaming, "Help me!" and "Tell me what to do!"

May God help us. We're now reaping what we, as a society, sowed.”

The Daily Nonpareil printed my letter on Sunday. I continue to watch the developments, and it’s easy to see that the difference here was NOT money, as the mainstream media, and liberals of all types and color would have you believe.

The difference here was attitude. It was the self-sufficient versus the dependent.

The evil rich and middle-income residents fled New Orleans because they are used to accepting the responsibility for their own welfare and safety.

The poor stayed behind because they're mired in the sludge of generation after generation of dependency on government. The accomplished class knows that they bear the responsibility for meeting their own needs and providing for their safety. The poor by-and-large bear no such responsibility. To them, it's the government's job. Instead of taking responsibility for their own safety --- they just sat there, waiting for government to come and save them.

The achievement-oriented residents of New Orleans were spared the horrors of the violence and filth that followed the flooding because they kept doing what they had been doing all along -- accepting responsibility. The poor were subjected to the violence and filth because they also kept doing what they had been doing all along -- depending on government.

Hurricane Katrina illustrated the truth behind the contention that poverty is a behavioral disorder.

God Bless,
Dan'L

Who's going to pay, . . . .

and how much responsibility do taxpayers have for footing the bill??

Is there room to debate whether or not the federal taxpayers ought to pick up the tab for rebuilding New Orleans??

Of course, and we'll have those conversations, right here on VRWC. But, for now, let's just take a cursory view of the issues, . . . .

Why, for instance, should the taxpayers step forward to rebuild a home that was (a) located behind a levee and sitting below sea level, and (b) wasn't adequately insured?? Actually, though, when you think about the big picture, . . . there are going to be two debates. The first is over whether or not it is the taxpayer's responsibility to foot the bill, and the second will be over whether or not taxes ought to be raised to cover the tab. George W. Bush says he won't raise taxes, but he and I disagree over most spending issues, and how the money should flow.

The Democrats have been trying for years to increase taxes on the evil and hated rich. Liberalism appeals to those who have not achieved, and don't have the gumption to learn the definition of that word. Liberalism is actually the philosophy of anti-individualism. Individual achievement and excellence must, then, be discouraged and punished. What better way to punish evil individuals who dare to rise above the masses than to simply seize the fruits of their labors?? In the world of Democrats and liberalism accomplishment, achievement and individualism must be punished. This is why Democrats will work hard to make sure that taxes are increased to pay for Katrina recovery. Not taxes on everybody, mind you, . . . but only the taxes on the wicked, evil rich people and their corporations, (don't get me started on the differences --- THAT'S what they're gonna say!).

The alternative, of course, is to run a deficit, like we've been doing for years. Democrats now tell us that deficits are bad. A few decades ago Democrats were arguing just the opposite, that deficits were simply a byproduct of government doing what government needs to do, . . . care for its citizens. Democrats weren't so eager to hike taxes in those days, perhaps because those tax hikes hit people who vote for Democrats. Now that Democrats have managed to shift almost the entire tax burden on the upper 30% of income earners -- people who are more likely to vote Republican -- tax hikes are the ONLY way to go.

But then, deficits aren't necessarily all that evil, when you get right down to it. If Americans had to pay the entire purchase price for a home the year they bought it, nobody would own homes. During the year in which you buy a home, or a car for that matter, you will probably spend more than you take in. You'll run a deficit. You'll finance that deficit over the course of the coming years. There is no problem with the federal government financing the cost of this recovery effort over several years, . . . IF, and it's a big if, . . . . the government will show some financial responsibility in other spending. Anyone think that's going to happen, . . . given the level of intellect applying to most of those currently elected to Congress??

God Bless,
Dan'L

Clinton Turns on Bush

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Former US president
Bill Clinton News News Photos Images Web Bill Clinton sharply criticised George W. Bush for the
Iraq News News Photos Images Web Iraq War and the handling of Hurricane Katrina, and voiced alarm at the swelling US budget deficit.

Breaking with tradition under which US presidents mute criticisms of their successors, Clinton said the Bush administration had decided to invade Iraq "virtually alone and before UN inspections were completed, with no real urgency, no evidence that there were weapons of mass destruction."

The Iraq war diverted US attention from the war on terrorism "and undermined the support that we might have had," Bush said in an interview with an ABC's "This Week" programme.
Clinton said there had been a "heroic but so far unsuccessful" effort to put together an constitution that would be universally supported in Iraq.

The US strategy of trying to develop the Iraqi military and police so that they can cope without US support "I think is the best strategy. The problem is we may not have, in the short run, enough troops to do that," said Clinton.

On Hurricane Katrina, Clinton faulted the authorities' failure to evacuate New Orleans ahead of the storm's strike on August 29.

People with cars were able to heed the evacuation order, but many of those who were poor, disabled or elderly were left behind.

"If we really wanted to do it right, we would have had lots of buses lined up to take them out," Clinton.

He agreed that some responsibility for this lay with the local and state authorities, but pointed the finger, without naming him, at the former director of the
Federal Emergency Management Agency News News Photos Images Web Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

FEMA boss Michael Brown quit in response to criticism of his handling of the Katrina disaster. He was viewed as a political appointee with no experience of disaster management or dealing with government officials.

"When James Lee Witt ran FEMA, because he had been both a local official and a federal official, he was always there early, and we always thought about that," Clinton said, referring to FEMA's head during his 1993-2001 presidency.

"But both of us came out of environments with a disproportionate number of poor people."
On the US budget, Clinton warned that the federal deficit may be coming untenable, driven by foreign wars, the post-hurricane recovery programme and tax cuts that benefitted just the richest one percent of the US population, himself included.

"What Americans need to understand is that ... every single day of the year, our government goes into the market and borrows money from other countries to finance Iraq,
Afghanistan News News Photos Images Web Afghanistan, Katrina, and our tax cuts," he said.

"We have never done this before. Never in the history of our republic have we ever financed a conflict, military conflict, by borrowing money from somewhere else."

Clinton added: "We depend on Japan, China, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, and Korea primarily to basically loan us money every day of the year to cover my tax cut and these conflicts and Katrina. I don't think it makes any sense."

Former Veep enters the Blame Game, . . .

Al Gore jumps into the frey, with his own version, using his self-appointed expert status on Enviro-issues.


Hurricane Katrina offered “a taste” of the disasters, and the response to them, that the US could expect as a consequence of climate change, former vice president Al Gore said on Saturday.

He cited recent research that found warmer sea surface temperatures - a result of global warming - had strengthened hurricanes and major storms around the world. Speaking at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York, where climate change was one of the key issues under discussion, he also criticised those politicians he said wanted to trim government too far, as weak government was incapable of responding adequately to emergencies.

He said: “Katrina is the first sip, the first taste, of a bitter cup that will be proffered to us over and over again. It is up to us [to tackle climate change], and it does involve accepting that there is a legitimate role for government.”

Mr Gore spoke out against the proposed suspension of certain environmental regulations, which some have argued are necessary to deal with Katrina's aftermath: “The response to Katrina should not be to suspend environmental laws and to cut taxes once again.”

Kofi Annan, the secretary general of the United Nations, also spoke out in favour of swifter action on climate change. The UN will face stiff negotiations in November at the next round of meetings on the Kyoto treaty on climate change, which binds developed nations to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Its provisions expire in 2012, and at present there is nothing to replace it.

The US administration of President George W Bush, which has rejected the treaty, opposes opening up negotiations on its future, calling such moves “premature”.

In a challenge to the Bush position, Mr Annan said: “It is time we began to prepare the next steps, where negotiations are required to bring a multilateral, universal approach [to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change].”