Katrina Housing Funds Go To Port Instead

Mississippi's Move To Divert HUD Money Questioned As Affordable Housing Remains Scarce

(AP)  The federal government on Friday approved Mississippi's plan to divert $600 million in hurricane housing funds to a port improvement project, angering critics who say tens of thousands of people made homeless by Hurricane Katrina still need help.

In his letter to Gov. Haley Barbour, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson said that although he's concerned about using the housing money for the port project, congressional language associated with the use of block grant funds "allows me little discretion."

"I'm sure that you share my concern that there may still be significant unmet needs for affordable housing, and I strongly encourage you to prioritize Gulf Coast housing as you move forward," Jackson wrote.

Mississippi plans to restore public infrastructure and publicly owned facilities at the State Port at Gulfport that were destroyed during Katrina, and to improve the port's operating capacity.

The plan has drawn harsh criticism from several groups working on recovery efforts in the region who say housing is too scarce not to devote all possible resources to it.

Kimberly Miller, a policy analyst for Oxfam America, said the state's long-term recovery committees that work with displaced families have 15,000 cases on their waiting lists, and a similar number of people are in temporary housing.

The state's plan "doesn't make any financial sense when you look at the number of people who haven't gotten back into homes," Miller said.

Katrina left the Gulf Coast in tatters in 2005 and many who fled the region have yet to return. Property, rental and insurance prices have soared since the storm. Barbour announced on Tuesday that the state would devote another $100 million toward affordable housing.

Mississippi received $5.4 billion in federal hurricane recovery funding. The $600 million now going to the port originally was allocated for the state's housing assistance program, which provided money to families who lost property to Katrina's storm surge.

In a statement issued after HUD's approval, Barbour said restoration of the port was a key part of the hurricane recovery plan from the beginning.

Barbour said Mississippi has a comprehensive program of recovery "designed to get families back in homes, restore and create new jobs, and rebuild the coast as quickly as possible."

Jackson said Congress eliminated many of the restrictions that would normally accompany federal grants in the name of speeding recovery on the coast. Two members of Congress, however, had urged him to reject Mississippi's plan.

Reps. Barney Frank, D-Mass., and Maxine Waters, D-Calif., told Jackson in a letter that they were prepared to hold oversight hearings about the use of the Community Development and Block Grant funds that HUD had awarded Mississippi in the storm's aftermath.

Frank and Waters said that a recent FEMA report estimated that 40,897 Mississippians remained displaced after the storm as of November 2007. They said only a fraction of the federal assistance has been used to benefit low and moderate-income residents.

Waters said in a telephone interview that she doesn't understand why Jackson doesn't think he had the authority to reject the plan.

"I am suspicious that Barbour receives favored treatment with this administration. He kind of gets his way," Waters said.

State officials said the State Port at Gulfport is the nation's 17th-busiest container port, and the third-busiest on the Gulf of Mexico.

According to the plan submitted to HUD, the port's infrastructure, equipment and facilities were crippled by the storm. The gross maritime revenue dropped from $9.4 million in June 2004 to $4.1 million in June 2007.

[rowdytexan2]

To hell with port maritime revenue! Those people need homes! Let the people making money of the port rebuild it!

[ubrew12]

Why are we pitting port reconstruction AGAINST housing for the displaced???

What the fvck happened to this country???

[bookout2]

Typical fat cat republican greed. Give all the
money to big business.

[joyous88]

conservatives are criminals

[b-easy63]

Vote that corrupt fat fvcker out.

[stupidlittle]

C''MON CONSERVATIVES ARE PEOPLE TO !!
(mean,greety,selfish people)

[samrensho]

Heck of a job, Brownie.

[samrensho]

That tub of guts looks like he has already eaten part of the 600 mil.

[joyous88]

Funny, we got these conservatives in government because they were ably to bribe the christians with the faith based initiative,

The mindless christian vote elected Bush and barbour

[rfcnj68]

Sorry joyous88 It was not the mindless Christians that got them elected it was the idiots like you who more than likely did not go out to vote because you did not like either canidate.

The other problem here is that this is what happens when there is no one watching the BS that is going on with our government. You watch Alphonso Jackson that made this public will be unemployeed soon because of this. Stop being stupid if you want change stop voting for whoever and start helping to get other people in office beside these rich bureaucrats who continue to get fat off of us.

People say it is historic to have a black American )Sorry they are not African American they have never been there)and a female running for office, I say it is not the woman running has always been privlaged and never had to worry about where the money would come from to pay bills from week to week. As for Mr. Obama does not look like he stugled much either and by the way he is not black he''s an oreo mom was white. Get me a real housewife in office or a man that has had to work his whole life and make ends meet than I bet you would see a true balanced budget along with a cut in the BS spending.

[hdinsight]

The tragedy of Katrina is compounded by the widespread corruption amongst the very people we trust to lead us. Not only are these leaders not helping with the rebuilding efforts, they are stealing from the suffering survivors to fund their own pet projects. This is morally reprehensible.

[jjp735i]

Why is it taking Bush & the federal government this long to rebuild Mississippi? I would like to see a very complete aduit of where all the money went and just who it was given to.

[brianbwb-2009]

"That tub of guts looks like he has already eaten part of the 600 mil." Posted by samrensho

Bingo! you know how much marking up, and other corruptions are standard in large projects like this...

[piercetheval]

...the war in Iraq is costing the U.S.A. apprx. 3600 dollars per second. How long would we have to postpone the war to come up with the 600 million dollars to re-fund the housing assistance program? Do the Math!

[piercetheval]

...affordable housing...affordable housing...Hmmm. Just whom are they refering too in the "affordable sense"? What the State can afford to shell out? People need "HOMES" not affordable housing. I can only imaging the cardboard shantys they want to provide for the people. If the Feds won''t armour the Hummers in Iraq or adequately arm our soldiers there just what kind of "Housing" do you think they are going to approve. I''ll admit anything is better than nothing, and that may be the tatic being employed here by the delay.

[hungry1968]

Funny, we got these conservatives in government because they were ably to bribe the christians with the faith based initiative,

The mindless christian vote elected Bush and barbour

Posted by joyous88 at 06:46 AM : Jan 26, 2008




I hope all the people still without a house voted for this GOP (Government Over People) pig.

Ignorant Christians, that vote for ignorant politicians, for ignorant reasons, deserve ignorant leaders, that make ignorant decisions.

[hungry1968]

Why is it taking Bush & the federal government this long to rebuild Mississippi? I would like to see a very complete aduit of where all the money went and just who it was given to.

Posted by jjp735i at 07:45 AM : Jan 26, 2008




No bid contracts to KBR - a subsidy company of Haliburton.

Unfortunately, this would require congressional over sight, and the democrats in congress have a proven record of NOT overseeing the corrupt Bush administration or even going as far as asking the questions.

[runningralph]

I was down on the Gulf coast a few weeks after the storm. There was an tremendous amount of damage. All sorts of buildings, roads, bridges, beaches, boats destroyed. In Ocean Springs there was a house roof almost intact lying flat on the ground with no house under it. I went back about a year later and saw a tremendous amount of repair and construction had been done. Traffic was heavy, restaurants full, businesses humming. Roads, bridges, seaports, are the legitimate charge of taxpayers. Individual housing is the responsibility of the individual who should maintain adequate insurance. A seaport is a muscle of a nation. Public housing is an infection.

[hungry1968]

Individual housing is the responsibility of the individual who should maintain adequate insurance. A seaport is a muscle of a nation. Public housing is an infection.

Posted by runningralph at 09:16 AM : Jan 26, 2008





When you refer to "adequate insurance", are you talking about the people who had hurricane insurance, but were denied coverage by their carriers because the "storm surge" was considered part of a flood, and not part of the hurricane that their hurricane insurance should have covered?

Or are you talking about the people who had hurricane insurance, but were denied coverage by their carriers because the "high winds" weren''t considered as part of the hurricane that their hurricane insurance should have covered?

[chalres-2009]

At least this is not Louisiana (for now).

[offtheback]

I would like to see a very complete aduit of where all the money went and just who it was given to.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by jjp735i

The money went to the same place the billions in Icrack went. Just take a look where the polis end up when they leave office. With nice cush jobs that do nothing with the co''s. they gave the money to.

[downsteamjim]

We must make sure that there is no business or commercial activity in these areas. The more people on welfare, the more democrat votes.

[offtheback]

Ignorant Christians, that vote for ignorant politicians, for ignorant reasons, deserve ignorant leaders, that make ignorant decisions.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by hungry1968

Define ignorant. They got away with bilking the American people out of untold Billions for themselves and their friends. Pretty shrewed I''d say.

[offtheback]

A seaport is a muscle of a nation. Public housing is an infection.


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Posted by runningralph

You, sir, are an infection unto mankind. Care for your fellow man and you in turn will be cared for. Care not at your own peril. The human race is not long for thi earth. She grows weary of us and will soon shake us off like the bad case of flees we are.

[offtheback]

PS, Iwould not urinate on a politition or company exec were they on fire. Unless I could manage to p kerosene.

[runningralph]

Hungry1968,
I''m referring to homeowners in flood prone areas that should have flood insurance as well as homeowners storm insurance. The cost of living is high in the US. What makes it high is law abiding citizens having to pick up the tab for irresponsible people''s messes.

[offtheback]

What makes it high is law abiding citizens having to pick up the tab for irresponsible people''''s messes.


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Posted by runningralph

You tell only part of the story. Tha true cost of living is business that refuses to pay a decent wage for a fair days work only to pad up the botton line in the billions, line the pockets of the top one percent of the population. How much is enough? I am not talking about communisim here just equity. Workers unions did not appear in a vacume.

[downsteamjim]

To Offtheback: Unions have been great for G.M.; Chrysler; and Ford. Just ask Toyota, Honda,; etc.

[berniepeders]

Individual housing is the responsibility of the individual who should maintain adequate insurance. A seaport is a muscle of a nation. Public housing is an infection.

Posted by runningralph at 09:16 AM : Jan 26, 2008

ralph-

You are absolutely right. I couldn''t agree more. Anyone who doesn''t agree with your statement is too ignorant to bother arguing with.
Peace brother.

[rowdytexan2]

So, what you guys are saying is that it''s just ok for the money that earmarked for HUD to replace housing for people be given to rebuild the port that benefits big business??? How very corruptly parsimonious of you! Let the people sleep in the streets while business just rolls right along!!!

YOU ARE IDIOTS!!!

[hungry1968]

Hungry1968,
I''''m referring to homeowners in flood prone areas that should have flood insurance as well as homeowners storm insurance. The cost of living is high in the US. What makes it high is law abiding citizens having to pick up the tab for irresponsible people''''s messes.

Posted by runningralph at 10:22 AM : Jan 26, 2008



People that live in houses 10 feet above high tide level within a few hundred feet of the ocean aren''t living in flood prone areas.

The only way those areas could be flooded, is by something such as a storm surge generated by a hurricane. But the people with hurricane insurance were routinely denied their claims, because the insurance companies claimed the "storm surge" was actually a flood - impossible under any circumstance except for a hurricane.

[rowdytexan2]

And you have forgotten that the insurance companies, your other big business bastwards have taken their good little time to pay off to the ones that did have insurance.

Again, you are idiots!

[ubrew12]

I ask again: Why are we pitting port reconstruction AGAINST housing for the displaced (i.e. aren''t we big enough to rebuild both)???

This would have been a no-brainer in the past. 30 years of supply=side economics has turned this country to sh*t. $1 trillion just spent to ensure Bush''s cronies have the rights to Iraqi oil. I weep for this nation, now fighting itself for the pittance earmarked for Katrina (ports vs housing, truly pathetic).

[joyous88]

These guys are just some more of the conservative evangelical criminals from the white house

another gift from the president of the US and the mindless christian vote

[gopack443]

If this keeps up sooner or latter the people down there are going to get off there a$$''$ and start doing for themselves like the rest of the world.
Let''s all hope they find a way to milk the rest of the county before they do something crazy, LIKE GET A JOB! And if that''s not possible to get a job there move to where there are jobs!

[hdinsight]

To those who are writing senseless comments, to those who lack the understanding & the compassion to fully grasp the HORROR OF A NATURAL DISASTER: The HUD grant''s chief purpose is to provide assistance to the displaced HOMEOWNERS so the individual families & communities can RECOVER/REBUILD. It''s been over 2 years since Katrina struck. With close to 41,000 families in Mississippi displaced & struggling, it is clear that HUD is failing to achieve their mission. To give $600,000,000.00 of HUD money to the port when THOUSANDS of families have not been addressed is OUTRAGEOUS, CORRUPT, UNJUST & UNETHICAL. How can it be acceptable to see foreign ships pull into a harbor while 41,000 of our nation''s families in Mississippi sleep on park benches? Why don''t more AMERICANS care about their FELLOW AMERICANS? This isn''t a time for judgement. Only righteous fools judge.

[blondmadison]

PURE ROTTEN!

When things like this happen, it makes me wonder if the levy was allowed to break, knowing it would create a path for the WEALTHY to rebuild on the cemetary plots of the indigent.

Like Donald Trump. He made a bid and is planning on a hotel there now. Picking dead men clean is a booming business.

Who received kickbacks in this venture?

I found it appalling that they would consider a football stadium with the wow wow latest in lighting more important than the homeless. That too spoke volumes.

Who prospers from these ventures? Follow the money trail and get the freaks on video spending their loot. Get their addresses on the Internet. Get their photos on the Internet. They are nastier criminals than outright murderers.

This makes me ill.

[blondmadison]

Why don''t they employ the homeless with portions of the grant money instead of contracting the work out and being ripped off thru those channels too?

Why can''t anyone care about the plight of the indigent homeless? R U sick or what?

[blondmadison]

Waters said in a telephone interview that she doesn''t understand why Jackson doesn''t think he had the authority to reject the plan.

"I am suspicious that Barbour receives favored treatment with this administration. He kind of gets his way," Waters said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If the powers that be cannot see the corruption, then get them out of their positions. Get this pig out of his job so that the problems regarding the homeless can be addressed.

He can''t see past his own fat gut to be able to help the problem. Apparently education didn''t help him and neither did kickbacks. He isn''t curable. Send him on his way and be done all ready.

[flreason]

Ralph&Ernie: You guys are full of s**t. I have family in Bay St. Louis that had every kind of insurance available and they''re still living in modular housing because of slow or contested payments, bureaucratic red tape, infrastructure damage, etc. These weren''t low income people--they were educated professional people.

Following your logic, all public health programs that research possible pandemic viruses should be eliminated because individuals should be responsible for their own health care. National disasters require national planning and response. These communities and jobs were in a region of the country that has been expanding. There aren''t enough jobs in "safe" places to absorb all of the workers displaced by Katrina.

A disaster of this magnitude reverberates in the whole economy. The difference between Katrina and the sub-prime lending industry collapse''s effect on the economy is that the hurricane couldn''t be avoided. Do you think we should just let all of the financial institutions fail and throw the U.S. into a 1930s-style depression? That would be as logical as your suggestions.

Any fraud by individuals after Katrina is dwarfed by the criminal acts of insurance companies who have rejected legitimate claims, and no-bid contractors who have stolen taxpayers'' money and delivered shoddy work and materials--when they delivered anything at all. Let Washington and Gov Barbour go after that money instead of diverting HUD funds meant for housing.

[mcvet]

If this keeps up sooner or latter the people down there are going to get off there a$$''''$ and start doing for themselves like the rest of the world.
Let''''s all hope they find a way to milk the rest of the county before they do something crazy, LIKE GET A JOB! And if that''''s not possible to get a job there move to where there are jobs!


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Posted by GOPACK443 at 12:22 PM : Jan 26, 2008
+ report abuse

You Nazi''s never stop amazing me! It''s hard to imagine an American being this bad but then you freaks have never been American''s now have you? In fact in recent years you have proven beyond any doubt that you will salute any flag, even Red China, for a profit. A big SIEG HEIL to you swastika hugger!!

[savdavid]

What did you expect in Bush''s Amurica? Only the rich and corporations reap government aid. The poor get little and the middle class pays for all of it.

[ubrew12]

curse914 said: "Do you think we should just let all of the financial institutions fail and throw the U.S. into a 1930s-style depression? "
Wow. You fail at your business and go under. What possible reason do banks and other lenders HAVE to keep fraudulent lending under wraps if YOU (with your apparently infinite generosity) will BAIL THEM OUT of their bad decisions !!! I guess there IS a free lunch... after all...

It took a Republican to find one...

[ubrew12]

GOPACK443 said: "sooner or latter the people down there are going to get off there a$$''''$ ...GET A JOB!"
With any luck, your neck of the woods will be treated to a natural disaster. Then we can all laugh at YOUR misfortune and call you a lazy so-n-so.

[ubrew12]

curse914 said: "I think you have me mixed up with someone I was responding too. I did not say what you have me quoted as saying."

Sorry, I meant flreason

[crater7]

BARBOUR; LOWEST OF LOW. BUSH''S BUDDY, FAT GOOD OLE BOY, REPUBLICAN LOBBYIST. STEEL FROM THE POOR, GIVE TO THE RICH. WHAT ELSE DID YOU EXPECT?????????

[xlib]

Geesh, we went a whole month whithout a katrina story. Notice the article does not say who in "the federal government approved...". But, it got the reaction the msm wanted from the lefty leemings. So, why no outcry about all the corruption and graft that is the democratic run city of NO?? Where has all the money gone??
Oh mcvet, still off your meds?? As for facists and nazi''s and red china, yada, yada, yada. Look to your socialist party and see who gets the big bucks from china. Your own madamd chang ki clinton and her hubby, that''s who. Do us all a favor and get your levels checked. You need serious help.

[runningralph]

The Gulf coast is being rebuilt at a fast pace. Lots of construction going on. Roads full of traffic. Restaurants busy, stores busy, casinos jammed packed. Dynamic, happening, busy. All they need now is to get the seaport up to grade.