Hurricane Housing: And Your Money Back....Whether You Like It Or Not

Thanks to FEMA's monolithic incompetence, thousands of hurricane survivors from both Katrina and Rita who got money they didn't need are going to have to pay it back.

How much do you want to bet that those notices are going to go to people who DID need the aid and are just being squeezed to pay for the Iraq war, eh?

Let's be clear: Everyone who spent their $2,000 debit card allotment on strip clubs or Louis Vitton bags should pay up. But as the AP article notes, a good portion of those incorrect payments were due to mistakes FEMA made in the processing. To be fair, the agency was monumentally overworked and relying on untrained volunteers to process all of these claims, but if they'd had more transparent oversight, there would have been a lot less in the way of fraud.

I especially love the whole IRS-esque "set up a payment plan" nonsense. These guys KNOW most of these people won't have the dough to pay that money back immediately, and even at 2 percent interest, if it compounds daily, you're looking at an extra $100 a month, each month, not including penalties. Good luck getting that off your jacket.

And how's all that FEMA money being spent? Well, apparently people who have been begging for trailers are getting left out in the cold, while unused trailers sit vacant and FEMA can't be bothered to move them.

Your tax dollars at work:

Posted at April 23, 2006 07:53 PM

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Thanks to FEMA's monolithic incompetence, thousands of hurricane survivors from both Katrina and Rita who got money they didn't need are going to have to pay it back. How much do you want to bet that those notices are going to go to people who DID need the aid and are just being squeezed to pay for the Iraq war, eh? Let's be clear: Everyone who spent their $2,000 debit card allotment on strip clubs or Louis Vitton bags should pay up. But as the AP article notes, a good portion of those incorrect payments were due to mistakes FEMA made in the processing. To be fair, the agency was monumentally overworked and relying on untrained volunteers to process all of these claims, but if they'd had more transparent oversight, there would have been a lot less in the way of fraud. I especially love the whole IRS-esque "set up a payment plan" nonsense. These guys KNOW most of these people won't have the dough to pay that money back immediately, and even at 2 percent interest, if it compounds daily, you're looking at an extra $100 a month, each month, not including penalties. Good luck getting that off your jacket. And how's all that FEMA money being spent? Well, apparently people who have been begging for trailers are getting left out in the cold, while unused trailers sit vacant and FEMA can't be bothered to move them. Your tax dollars at work: