FEMA Shells Out Over $1 Billion on Bogus Claims
Poor FEMA. They're sort of like the one relative in the family that, as much they try to get it together, just keeps screwing up.
I saw the story break last night on the evening news—FEMA paid out as much as $1.4 billion in bogus assistance for those affected by hurricanes Katrina and Rita last year. Federal investigators have discovered that, understaffed, overwhelmed and a tad careless, the government agency has sent assistance checks and debit cards to people who had listed fake addresses (in some instances, P.O. boxes and vacant lots) to collect the cash. One person even used a cemetery address to collect the funds.
Authorities caught on to the billion dollar mistake when an undercover investigator applied for assistance and received a large sum of money from the agency. As a result, the Government Accountability Office estimates that as much as 16 percent of the billions of dollars in aid were unwarranted. Not the best news for taxpayers.
And what did the "assault on taxpayer dollars" pay for?
According to reports, fraudulent claimants spent the money on everything from pro football tickets, to a gender re-assignment surgery. Fantastic. The Associated Press is reporting that the findings of the investigation will be disclosed at a hearing today by a Homeland Security subcommittee. I'll be sure to post updates here as they come.
[source]: MSNBC
Comments
Another FEMA victory! I can't imagine how rich I'd be if selling insurance was as easy as sending out a FEMA relief check.
Posted by: Evan | June 14, 2006 11:22 PM
Don't be too quick to blame FEMA. I think it's more appropriate to place the blame on those who were dishonest and took advantage of generousity. Granted, there were a lot of mistakes made by many people/organizations, but none of those justify the theft by these people.
When people take charity for granted, it's time to cut back on that charity. Why not use the land of opportunity to make a life for oneself? Because a Robin Hood government will support laziness for free, that's why.
Posted by: Peter | June 15, 2006 03:32 PM
Like obituaries for aged famous people, this is one of those stories news outlets probably wrote months agoâ€â€and when the GAO report came out they just filled in the blanks with specific numbers and a few anecdotes. Fraudâ€â€which shouldn’t be excused or toleratedâ€â€was bound to be a result of Katrina/Rita.
I wonder if the 16 percent numberâ€â€the percentage of the total aid that was stolenâ€â€is higher or lower than what experts had predicted.
Posted by: Jeb Foster | June 15, 2006 08:18 PM
I hear you, Peter. It's discouraging to see people taking from others to help themselvesâ€â€especially during a crisis.
I also sympathized with FEMA spokesperson, Aaron Walker, when he said that, after the harsh criticism of FEMA's reponse, the agency made a point to send assistance as quickly as they could (resulting, perhaps, in some oversight with the checks). At the same time however, more preparation on FEMA's part may have alleviated the stress and pressure that led to some of the post-Katrina/Rita problems.
Shoulda, coulda, woulda, right?
At this point, I just want to see the thieves caught and prosecuted. And I sort like the idea that, like a kid who steals a piece of candy from the store, they should have to go door to door and return the stolen money to the people who need it the most.
But that's just what happens in my mind's court of law. :)
Posted by: Megan Mahan | June 15, 2006 08:45 PM