Audit: Katrina Contracts Wasted Millions

raedinthemiddle
Cleaning the house was such a sad thing to do. It was full of personal memories telling the details of a family's life. We tried to keep the "valuables", like this wedding dress, in one pile outside the house hoping that its owners will find it here.

Note this is six months after Katrina broke the levees in New Orleans

By HOPE YEN, Associated Press Writer
19 minutes ago


WASHINGTON - The government wasted millions of dollars in its award of post-Katrina Hurricane contracts for disaster relief, including at least $3 million for 4,000 beds that were never used, congressional auditors said Thursday.

The Government Accountability Office's review of 13 major contracts — many of them awarded with limited or no competition after the Aug. 29 hurricane — offers the first preliminary overview of their soundness.

Waste and mismanagement were widespread due to poor planning and miscommunication, according to the five-page briefing paper released Thursday. That led to money being paid for services, such as housing or ice, that were never used.