FEMA denies some storm help -Fla. ("essentially a political organization")

FEMA denies some storm help


http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/12529382.htm

The federal government will not help to pay lodging and repair expenses for South Floridians whose homes were destroyed or heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina, officials said Wednesday.

The decision by the Federal Emergency Management Agency drew swift protests from South Florida politicians. Democrats asked President Bush to reverse it. Republicans led an effort to draft a separate letter to FEMA under-secretary Michael Brown, asking him to reverse it.

The same day FEMA denied individual assistance, the agency expanded the amount it plans to reimburse local governments for repairs to public property in Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties. The assistance to local governments will probably amount to more than $100 million.


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''I've reached the conclusion now that FEMA is essentially a political organization,'' said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Weston Democrat who claimed the agency was more generous last year because the storms preceded an election. ``They had a standard that was basically fluid from storm to storm. And there are people in Broward and Miami-Dade who are going to be hurting badly.''

agency since its beginning.

aren't there laws? have they ever done this before?

filed false claims extorting their damage claims last time around. Sadly, now people are paying the price.