10.07.2005
Storm Contracts to Be Rebid, FEMA Chief Says (NYTimes.com)
By DAVID STOUT
Published: October 6, 2005
WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 - The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency said today that millions of dollars worth of federal hurricane-relief contracts that were awarded with little or no competition will be rebid to minimize waste and abuse.
"I've never been a fan of no-bid contracts," R. David Paulison, FEMA's acting director, told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, one of a half-dozen Senate and House panels holding hearings today on hurricane-recovery issues.
An underlying theme that emerged from the sessions was a sense of alarm over the overall cost of the recovery, acknowledged to be in the many billions of dollars, and how much of that the federal government must pay.
"We can't dilly-dally on Capitol Hill as people in the region face real-world decisions on whether to relocate or not," Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, said at another session, that of the Senate Finance Committee, which he heads. "American taxpayers are compassionate, but rightly expect their hard-earned tax dollars to be spent wisely."
As for no-bid contracts, Mr. Paulison, according to The Associated Press, told the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, "Sometimes you have to do them because of the expediency of getting things done. And I can assure you that we are going to look at all of these contracts very carefully."
"All of those no-bid contracts, we are going to go back and rebid," said Mr. Paulison, who succeeded Michael D. Brown after Mr. Brown stepped down amid heavy criticism of FEMA's response to the destruction wrought by winds and floods along the Gulf Coast.
(More ... Storm Contracts to Be Rebid, FEMA Chief Says - New York Times) ¶ 08:13
Published: October 6, 2005
WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 - The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency said today that millions of dollars worth of federal hurricane-relief contracts that were awarded with little or no competition will be rebid to minimize waste and abuse.
"I've never been a fan of no-bid contracts," R. David Paulison, FEMA's acting director, told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, one of a half-dozen Senate and House panels holding hearings today on hurricane-recovery issues.
An underlying theme that emerged from the sessions was a sense of alarm over the overall cost of the recovery, acknowledged to be in the many billions of dollars, and how much of that the federal government must pay.
"We can't dilly-dally on Capitol Hill as people in the region face real-world decisions on whether to relocate or not," Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, said at another session, that of the Senate Finance Committee, which he heads. "American taxpayers are compassionate, but rightly expect their hard-earned tax dollars to be spent wisely."
As for no-bid contracts, Mr. Paulison, according to The Associated Press, told the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, "Sometimes you have to do them because of the expediency of getting things done. And I can assure you that we are going to look at all of these contracts very carefully."
"All of those no-bid contracts, we are going to go back and rebid," said Mr. Paulison, who succeeded Michael D. Brown after Mr. Brown stepped down amid heavy criticism of FEMA's response to the destruction wrought by winds and floods along the Gulf Coast.
(More ... Storm Contracts to Be Rebid, FEMA Chief Says - New York Times) ¶ 08:13
