02 September 2005
Congress Passes $10.5 Billion Aid Package for Hurricane Victims
Relief effort most extensive in U.S. history, President Bush says
By Jane Morse
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington -- The U.S. Congress quickly passed a $10.5 billion package to aid the victims of Hurricane Katrina, which devastated some 90,000 square miles (234,000 square kilometers) of Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida and Alabama, leaving at least hundreds dead and thousands homeless.
Hurricane Katrina struck the southeastern United States August 29, inflicting widespread damage and prompting the largest domestic relief effort in U.S. history. (See related article.)
The U.S. Senate gave the aid package voice-vote approval late September 1, and the House of Representatives passed the measure September 2 and sent the bill to the president for his signature. President Bush is signed the bill into law the evening of September 2.
The bill is an emergency supplemental appropriation for fiscal year 2005 for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Department of Defense. In a September 1 letter to the speaker of the House of Representatives, the president said he anticipates making an additional request for funds in the coming weeks "that will provide for a comprehensive response and recovery effort after fully assessing the impact of the hurricane."
Josh Bolten, director of the Office of Management and Budget, told reporters in a September 1 briefing that $10.5 billion "is, indeed, a stop-gap measure."
According to Bolten, the money will, however, be sufficient to fund the extraordinary efforts now being made by federal agencies "through at least the next few weeks." After that time, he said, "we believe that we will be able to get enough additional information to make a realistic assessment about what the total cost of responding to this disaster to the federal government is likely to be."
President Bush, as he was leaving the White House the morning of September 2 to travel to the afflicted areas, told reporters: "A lot of people are working hard to help those who have been affected …." But he acknowledged, "the results are not acceptable" for what he deemed "one of the worst natural disasters in our nation's history." (See related article.)
Bush vowed to "deploy the assets necessary to get the situation under control, to get the help to the people who have been affected."
The president had already declared the affected regions in the four states disaster areas, which allows for a full range of federal resources and capabilities to be released to save and sustain lives and support long-term recovery.
The Bush administration has mobilized agencies throughout the federal government to aid hurricane victims. The Department of Homeland Security, led by Secretary Michael Chertoff, is coordinating the intensive effort. The department’s Under Secretary for Emergency Preparedness Michael Brown is leading on-the-ground efforts that coordinate the resource of federal, state and local and local governments.
FEMA has deployed more than 50 disaster medical assistance teams, more than 25 urban search-and-rescue task forces, eight swift-water rescue teams, and two incident support teams. FEMA is also working to deliver water, ice, meals, medical supplies, generators, tents and tarps. There are currently more than 1,700 trucks mobilized to move these supplies into position.
The Pentagon is sending thousands of National Guardsmen to ensure civil order.
Private aid -- through the American Red Cross and the Disaster Relief Fund -- will also play a major role in recovery efforts. The president has called on former presidents George H.W. Bush (the current president's father) and Bill Clinton to lead a nationwide fundraising effort to help hurricane victims. The team will be soliciting funds from large corporations, small businesses and individual citizens across the nation.
President Bush has cautioned, "This recovery will take years. … The challenges that we face on the ground are unprecedented. But there is no doubt in my mind that we are going to succeed."
For additional information, see Hurricane Katrina.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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