Barack Obama

Rebids on FEMA contracts in doubt

Friday, December 16, 2005

TULSA WORLD
JIM MYERS World Washington Bureau

Senators had been pushing for other companies to get a crack at emergency housing contracts. WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn suffered another setback Thursday in his efforts to fight what he considers irresponsible federal spending.

The Oklahoma Republican and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., met with David Paulison, acting director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, on their concerns over four $100 million emergency housing contracts the agency awarded without competitive bids following Hurricane Katrina.

Coburn and Obama for weeks have been pressuring FEMA to put those contracts out to bid.

In November, the two offered a sense of the Senate resolution calling for such bids, and that nonbinding resolution was passed by unanimous consent.

Paulison, who reportedly told a key Senate committee the contracts would be put out to bid, told the two senators Thursday that the contracts will run out next month.

"As far as we can tell, those four contracts for $100 million each are scheduled to be completed in January, and it was too late to rebid them," said Obama, whose office had accused Paulison of flip-flopping on the issue.

Still, Obama did see a partial victory in Paulison's report.

He said FEMA had underestimated the costs of the original contracts, so additional contracts will be awarded and Paulison said those in the future will be put out to bid.

A FEMA spokesman said the agency was in the process of going out for bids on its housing contract when Katrina struck.

To address the massive emergency need right after the storm, the spokesman said the agency used short-term contracts with the four companies that in the past have competed for the contract.

Obama said FEMA also has identified $1.5 billion in contracts that are going to local firms owned by blacks, Latinos and women.

"I think Paulison recognizes the best way to rebuild is to make sure local businesses are participating," Obama said, referring to past concerns that disadvantaged businesses in the area hit by the storm were being left out as more contracts were given to non-local firms.

It was unclear what Coburn thought of the meeting. He declined to comment other than to say the session went fine.

In September, Coburn and Obama introduced legislation to create a temporary chief financial officer to be accountable for the billions being spent in the wake of Katrina. Their proposal won committee approval but has been stalled since then.