It is outrageous that these taxpaying citizens - these Texans! - should be victimized twice - first by the storm, then again by the state bureaucracy.
That is how Democratic State Senate candidate Joe Jaworski feels about the restrictive bureaucracy being used to slow down aid to victims of hurricane Rita. Last Friday Joe Jaworski wrote to Governor Rick Perry asking why Texas has been so leisurely to help the victims of hurricane Rita.
I know you share my outrage at the snail's pace of state aid for Texas families more than two years after Hurricane Rita came ashore with such force. The recent State Auditor's report finds that of nearly 4,300 applications for federal assistance controlled by your administration, only 13 have been helped.
Rather than helping families, Perry and the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs seem to be playing political favoritism to private companies.
The State Auditor's report makes clear that the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs has been too cautious in providing relief to the storm's victims but thrown caution to the wind when it comes to privatizing relief effort, including a multi-million dollar contract with a private firm whose top lobbyist is your former chief of staff.
The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs has also squandered more than $230,000 in hurricane relief on administrative expenses, according the State Auditor's report. That's one-fifth of what has been spent thus far-a ratio that would make Halliburton blush.
I urge you to make sure that Texans who applied for aid receive initial payments to get things going. The state can then provide additional funds based on a more thorough approval process. This plan will guarantee immediate help while allowing for safeguards to protect taxpayers against fraud or abuse.
Jaworski served as a city councilman in Galveston in 2005 (something he points to in his letter), and helped in the efforts to prepare for Hurricane Rita. While his area was not the hardest hit by the storm, thousands of people in the Galveston area were affected with thousands more along the Gulf Coast. It is time to help the other 4,287 Texans who need assistance. As Jaworski says in his letter, "They deserve help - now." Sadly, Mike Jackson, the Republican incumbent in SD-11, is silent on the issue.
|
