Congressmen Scalise, Cao and Mica Ask IG to Assess Katrina & Rita Backlog

Washington, DC -- Members of Congress today requested a government review of discrepancies in the number of unresolved FEMA Public Assistance projects still awaiting federal funds. Now four years after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, resolution to these projects will help Louisiana move forward with delayed disaster recovery efforts.

Congressmen John L. Mica (R-FL), Anh “Joseph” Cao (R-LA), and Steve Scalise (R-LA) requested that the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security conduct a review of the number, scope and value of pending projects related to the 2005 hurricanes.

“There is no excuse that FEMA has not been able to get on the same page with our state and local leaders to reach an agreement on the number of unresolved project worksheets,” Scalise said. “By getting the Inspector General involved, we will finally get a clear picture of how many projects are still stuck in the red tape of FEMA’s bureaucracy. We need to break through the red tape and logjams in the system, and find solutions to reform FEMA and prevent these delays from happening again in the future.”

“We must resolve the number of remaining issues holding up funds for projects that are in dispute so that federal, state and local officials can continue to rebuild,” Mica said. “Identifying the number of remaining projects will provide greater accountability and cut delays in the recovery process.”

“I am optimistic about our recovery efforts, but would like to see the process expedited,” Cao said. “We need to push forward with solving the issues of mismanagement, inordinate delays, and the unnecessary additional level of bureaucracy.”

Mica is the Republican Leader of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which has jurisdiction over the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Cao is also a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. On June 1st, Mica and Cao were joined by Rep. Scalise at Charity Hospital in New Orleans for a review of the current project backlog. At that meeting, state and local officials disputed the number of outstanding projects and associated value provided by FEMA.

The Members of Congress asked that the Inspector General report back within 30 days.

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Contact: Luke Bolar
202-226-4309