Last week, it became much more apparent that money that has been dedicated by Congress is not getting to the Louisiana Parishes for critical projects.

A series of letters were transmitted between Democratic Governor Blanco and U.S. Senator David Vitter (R-La.) that accused one another for placing obstacles to funding these projects.

In one letter, Governor Blanco expressed concern over Senator Vitter’s evaluation of funds that have been spent by the State for reconstruction of facilities and the state’s needs.  In a sharply worded statement concerning FEMA payments, Governor Blanco said to Senator Vitter, “what you fail to understand or present “. 

She also claimed in her letter that Senator Vitter sponsored legislation that barred loan forgiveness “for Louisiana communities struggling to recover”.

These projects and public assistance programs are incredibly important for the welfare of the state as it undergoes reconstruction.

According to Mark Smith of Mark C. Smith, Public Information Officer for the Louisiana Governor's Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Preparedness in an email response to a question by Bayoubuzz:

“The Public Assistance Program deals with repaying the state and local applicants for monies expended in the course of responding to the storm.  Examples are repaying the state for the search and rescue operations; repaying the locals for the overtime they incurred while their people struggled to respond to the utter devastation wrought by Katrina. It also includes removing and cleaning up debris and importantly, rebuilding damaged infrastructure.”

Bayoubuzz also asked what is the impact of these obligations and their effects on the Katrina and Rita recovery?

Smith replied, “Affect on recovery? Without the basic services to sustain modern life - public services, like sewer, water, roads, police, fire, sanitation, schools,  etc, people may be able to return to their former residence to lay their head at night, but they will have to go somewhere else for EVERYTHING else.”

In a Times Picayune Article on Saturday, Smith said parishes that repair facilities without precisely following FEMA's worksheets can be denied reimbursement, and so they must seek time-consuming changes to their plans.

The TP quoted Vitter to say "that doesn't explain away all the gap." He said the state agency is "hypersensitive about dotting the I's" and has "utterly bureaucratized this process." The senator's staff pointed to large projects in St. Bernard and Jefferson parishes in which the work had been done but the state money had not been released.

Vitter in his quote did not state which projects have been done and the money not been released. 

More importantly, should any of these projects go astray, Louisiana is on the hook to the federal government so it needs to make certain all I’s are dotted and unfortunately, the state department overseeing the reimbursements and payments is understaffed to meet all of the hundreds of needs around the state.  Vitter should detail those I’s that are not crossed and since it deals with federal issues, he would be in the best position to implement change.

Which gets us to the real problem--the Stafford Act.  It was designed for tragedies, but, nothing the size of Katrina and Rita where Louisiana does not have the staff to follow the specific rules and regulations to satisfy many of these projects and must follow the federal guidelines or else be financially responsible for the outcome.  Plus, the worksheets are from FEMA and must be meticulously followed.  Both the Stafford Act and the worksheet process should be reviewed in this Congress to ensure quick facilitation of payments.

Also, the loan forgiveness legislation Governor Blanco referred to in her letter to Senator Vitter is called the Community Disaster Loan Act of 2005 which was filed on October 7, 2005 less than two months after Katrina. 

The legislative summary says, “Authorizes the transfer of up to $750 million, of the "Disaster Relief" amounts provided in Public Law 109-62, to the Disaster Assistance Direct Loan Program (including up to $1 million for related administrative expenses) for the cost of direct loans as authorized under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. Requires such funds to be used to assist local governments in providing essential services. Allows such transfer to subsidize gross obligations for the principal amount of direct loans not to exceed $1 billion under the Stafford Act. Permits the amount of any such loan to exceed $5 million. Prohibits the cancellation of such loans. (Bayoubuzz bold emphasis). 

There were no amendments to the legislation and it passed both houses and signed by the President on the same day.

David Vitter should explain to the people of Louisiana why he would have authored such legislation that would prohibit cancellation of the loans when so many other disasters have allowed such forgiveness.  Blanco is also right in that he should make efforts to modify this legislation so the loans are forgiven just as they were in 9/11 and even Hurricane Iniki.  However, in fairness, all members of the Louisiana delegation should make this loan forgiveness legislation a priority.

In general, it would be quite helpful if during the year of rebuilding we get full support of the Louisiana Congressional Delegation to focus upon the process of rebuilding of public works.  I know this is an election year and the rhetoric can get heavy and the facts can fly mightily—both from the Governor and from members of Congress in response.  So, laws that place an unfair burden on Louisiana should be modified—even if it was the best deal that was going at the time.  Congress needs to modify and simplify its worksheets and our Congressional delegations should understand that process much better.  Our Louisiana Congressional delegation individuals should be more specific in their respective allegations so the information is helpful to the public and is not just politically expedient.  Our delegation should move to modify the Stafford Act and learn from our current experience in Louisiana.  Next summer, major catastrophes might be right around the bend of the Gulf.  We need to be ready, not just in our defense, but in our recovery.