Palazzo sought millions in Katrina relief for Biloxi Housing Authority

Source: Sun-Herald

Palazzo sought millions in Katrina relief for Biloxi Housing Authority

By ANITA LEE — calee@sunherald.com

BILOXI -- U.S. Rep. Steven Palazzo says he voted against funding to pay the Hurricane Sandy flood insurance claims because of the deficit, but as the chief financial officer for the Biloxi Public Housing Authority back in 2005, Palazzo asked for federal relief despite the nation's debt.

The Housing Authority listed $38.5 million in "Total Funds Needed Right Away" in a handout published one month after Katrina devastated 70 miles of Mississippi's coastline Aug. 29, 2005.

The handout quoted Palazzo, then the authority's deputy director and chief financial officer: "Tell our national leaders -- don't send more inspectors -- we know what's damaged and how to fix it. Send us money so we can put our families back together and do our part to rebuild our community."

The handout is still posted on its web site.

Public housing relief in Mississippi eventually totaled $110 million for Mississippi's three Coastal counties. Harrison County, where Palazzo is from, received $72 million in funding for public housing alone, according to figures compiled in 2010 by the office of former U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor, whom Palazzo defeated to take office in 2011 with an anti-Nancy Pelosi message.



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