Washington, D.C., Mar 16 -

Citing the overriding imperative to support our troops as they courageously fight the War on Terror in Iraq, Afghanistan, and around the world, U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce today voted in favor of H.R. 4939, the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for Defense, the Global War on Terror, and Hurricane Recovery, 2006.

Rep. Pearce strongly objected to the inclusion of nearly $20 billion in unrelated FEMA spending in this legislation, demanding accountability for the waste, fraud, and abuse that surfaced in recent audits by the Government Accountability Office and the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General:

“When we approved over $60 billion in Katrina-related assistance last fall, I cautioned my colleagues about the blank check we were writing FEMA, particularly in light of the utter dysfunction this agency had just demonstrated.

“Tragically for the residents of the Gulf Coast, our worst nightmares regarding waste, fraud, and abuse have come true. FEMA processed 900,000 fraudulent applications for cash aid – more than one third of the total number of applications it approved. FEMA also authorized $438 per night hotel rooms while paying $375 per night for beachfront condos.

“Most inexplicably, given the warnings many of us sounded last fall regarding its unwise strategy for housing victims, FEMA spent almost $900 million on manufactured and modular housing. More than 40% of these units lie rotting and uninhabited in a mud swamp.

“Before we give FEMA another dime, we have a duty to insist upon accountability. Pretend as we might, we are not helping the victims of Katrina and Rita by stuffing another $20 billion into FEMA’s piggybank. Just the opposite.

“I had no choice today but to vote ‘yes’ to support our troops in a time of war – but I do so with dismay regarding the inclusion of unrelated FEMA spending in this measure. Congress has thus been denied the chance to critically examine FEMA’s spending habits when such scrutiny is desperately needed.

“By passing $20 billion in new spending without independent consideration, Congress has become FEMA’s enabler”