No-Bid Katrina Contracts Have Wasted Hundreds of Millions of Taxpayer Dollars

No-Bid Katrina Contracts Have Wasted Hundreds of Millions of Taxpayer Dollars

Washington D.C.--With the one year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaching and much of the Gulf Coast region still devastated, the House Government Reform Committee, on which Congressman Sanders sits, has released a report documenting waste and fraud by government contractors hired in the aftermath of the disaster. The report shows that 70 percent of government contracts to repair the region were awarded without full competition, wasting hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars and delaying desperately needed repairs for Gulf Coast residents.

Sanders said, "The Bush Administration's ineptitude in addressing the devastation of Hurricane Katrina has cost Gulf Coast residents dearly. More than 70 percent of government repair contracts for the region were awarded without a competitive bidding process, allowing waste and fraud to run rampant and costing taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars. The residents of the Gulf Coast and the American people deserve better than empty promises from this Administration. It is long past time for the Republican leadership to act on real solutions that will provide Gulf Coast residents with the adequate repairs to housing, health care, schools, and other basic services that they desperately need.

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http://bernie.house.gov/documents/document.asp?issueNum=4994