Title: F E M A Official: Higher-ups Delayed Katrina Aid
IVXX - December 19, 2007 01:17 PM (GMT)
System created to help move disaster funds became a ‘black hole’
NEW ORLEANS - A week after Hurricane Katrina, a FEMA official in charge of streamlining the flow of disaster aid issued a directive that would have cut through the red tape and expedited a staggering 1,029 rebuilding projects and $5.3 billion.
The official issued a memo that said that once local and regional FEMA officials approve a project, Washington must release the money within three days.
But in a decision critics say led to the loss of precious time in New Orleans' recovery, FEMA higher-ups countermanded the order.Whole story at
MSNBC