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McCaul Makes FEMA Account for Taxpayer Money

September 29, 2006

(Washington, D.C.) - In a vote which takes aim at ending the waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer funds by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the United States House of Representatives passed FEMA reform legislation, implementing laws mandating federal workers account for every cent of taxpayer money spent during and after a natural disaster.

"FEMA officials allowed more than $1.5 billion dollars of taxpayer money to go wasted in the wakes of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita," stated Congressman Michael McCaul. He went on to say, "It was the worst example of government waste of taxpayer funds I have ever seen. Hopefully, with this law on the books, Americans will be protected from this kind of waste, fraud and abuse of their tax dollars."

Last June, McCaul, as Chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Investigations, held a hearing investigating the reports of significant waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars doled out by FEMA in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

"We heard how FEMA sent taxpayer money to prisoners in jail because government officials did not verify who was receiving the money. We heard about people who should have used their FEMA checks for rent or to find a job, but instead used it to buy champagne at Hooters. In the end it was overwhelmingly apparent that FEMA wasn’t paying attention to who it was sending money to or how much was being spent," stated McCaul.

Friday, McCaul and xxxx fellow Members of the House passed the Homeland Appropriations bill which, among other things, demands FEMA develop and maintain proper internal management controls to prevent and detect fraud, waste, and abuse. These controls will work to collect information on eligible recipients; verify the identity and address of recipients of disaster assistance before sending any money to minimize the risk of making duplicative payments or payments for fraudulent claims; and provides instructions to recipients of disaster assistance regarding the proper use of any such funding.

"I thank Chairman McCaul for his hard work and leadership on this issue," said Homeland Security Chairman Peter King (R-NY). "Without him, it wouldn't have been possible."