[StBernard] FEMA: Miss. 'Katrina cottage' plans better than La.'s

[Westley Annis]

Absolutely disgusting - JLY
 
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Mississippi's proposals to spend new federal
recovery money on quick-assemble "Katrina cottages" were more competitive
than plans offered by other Gulf Coast states, FEMA said Friday, amid
complaints that Louisiana's Hurricane Katrina victims were being treated
unfairly in the division of the cash.
 
Mississippi will get $281 million through the $400 million alternative
housing pilot program. Louisiana will receive $75 million to pay for the
larger and more permanent modular replacements for cramped trailers provided
by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
"Had we strictly stayed with the competitive bid process that money would
have all gone to one state," said Gil Jamieson, FEMA Deputy Director for
Gulf Coast Recovery. "Mississippi had in the competitive rankings the most
competitive housing proposals."
 
Louisiana officials, including U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu and Gov. Kathleen
Blanco, say their neighboring state suffered less damage in the 2005
hurricane season and shouldn't get 70 percent of the Katrina cottage money.
Landrieu called the divvying up of the new money "FEMA's upside down
decision-making." 
 
The nation's five Gulf Coast states competed for the pilot program dollars
to test and build alternative housing that FEMA hopes can become a model for
how to provide housing after another disaster, whether it's a tornado,
earthquake or hurricane. Congress earmarked the money to create the Katrina
cottage program.
 
The states submitted 29 individual plans, adding up to triple the available
money. FEMA selected projects that could be constructed, moved and installed
quickly and easily, Jamieson said. He said he didn't know how many people
would receive housing through the pilot program.
 
Alabama and Texas each will receive about $16 million for alternative
housing plans. The other $12 million will cover administrative and other
program costs.
 
Landrieu said FEMA was being unfair because hurricanes Katrina and Rita
destroyed more than 205,000 homes in Louisiana compared to 61,000 in
Mississippi.
 
Hurricane Katrina flooded and devastated most of New Orleans and many of the
nearby coastal communities on Aug. 29, 2005. Hurricane Rita delivered a
follow-up blow to Louisiana a month later.
 
Hurricane victims and local, state and federal officials have complained the
dollars FEMA has spent on cramped, flimsy travel trailers could be more
wisely spent on more adaptable, starter homes that disaster victims could
expand and ultimately own. However, FEMA was limited by federal law to
provide mobile homes and travel trailers until Congress set up the
alternative housing pilot program.