FEMA HOUSING: AN EXAMINATION OF CURRENT PROBLEMS AND INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS HEARING COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION JULY 8, 2009 Serial No. 111–27 Printed for the use of the Committee on Homeland Security Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/index.html U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 52–955 PDF WASHINGTON : 2009 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402–0001 COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY BENNIE G. THOMPSON, Mississippi, Chairman LORETTA SANCHEZ, California PETER T. KING, New York JANE HARMAN, California LAMAR SMITH, Texas PETER A. DEFAZIO, Oregon MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of DANIEL E. LUNGREN, California Columbia MIKE ROGERS, Alabama ZOE LOFGREN, California MICHAEL T. MCCAUL, Texas SHEILA JACKSON LEE, Texas CHARLES W. DENT, Pennsylvania HENRY CUELLAR, Texas GUS M. BILIRAKIS, Florida CHRISTOPHER P. CARNEY, Pennsylvania PAUL C. BROUN, Georgia YVETTE D. CLARKE, New York CANDICE S. MILLER, Michigan LAURA RICHARDSON, California PETE OLSON, Texas ANN KIRKPATRICK, Arizona ANH ‘‘JOSEPH’’ CAO, Louisiana BEN RAY LUJA´ N, New Mexico STEVE AUSTRIA, Ohio BILL PASCRELL, JR., New Jersey EMANUEL CLEAVER, Missouri AL GREEN, Texas JAMES A. HIMES, Connecticut MARY JO KILROY, Ohio ERIC J.J. MASSA, New York DINA TITUS, Nevada VACANCY I. LANIER LAVANT, Staff Director ROSALINE COHEN, Chief Counsel MICHAEL TWINCHEK, Chief Clerk ROBERT O’CONNOR, Minority Staff Director (II) C O N T E N T S Page STATEMENTS The Honorable Bennie G. Thompson, a Representative in Congress From the State of Mississippi, and Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security: Oral Statement ..................................................................................................... 1 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 2 The Honorable Mark E. Souder, a Representative in Congress From the State of Indiana .................................................................................................... 3 WITNESSES PANEL I Mr. W. Craig Fugate, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agen- cy, Department of Homeland Security: Oral Statement ..................................................................................................... 8 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 10 Mr. Richard L. Skinner, Inspector General, Department of Homeland Secu- rity: Oral Statement ..................................................................................................... 13 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 15 Mr. Gerald H. Jones, Member, National Institute of Building Sciences: Oral Statement ..................................................................................................... 20 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 21 PANEL II Ms. Erica Rioux Gees, Representative, The American Institute of Architects: Oral Statement ..................................................................................................... 54 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 55 Mr. Reilly Morse, Senior Attorney, Mississippi Center for Justice: Oral Statement ..................................................................................................... 59 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 61 Mr. Don Kubley, President, Intershelter: Oral Statement ..................................................................................................... 70 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 72 Mr. Braddon B. Rininger, President, Brajo, Incorporated: Oral Statement ..................................................................................................... 74 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 76 Mr. Walter J. Boasso, Chief Executive Officer, Help, LLC: Oral Statement ..................................................................................................... 81 Prepared Statement ............................................................................................. 83 FOR THE RECORD SG Blocks: Statement, Submitted by Chairman Bennie G. Thompson .............................. 88 Slides, Submitted by Chairman Bennie G. Thompson ......................................... 6 APPENDIX Questions From Chairman Bennie G. Thompson of Mississippi for W. Craig Fugate, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Depart- ment of Homeland Security ................................................................................. 103 (III) IV Page Questions From Honorable Yvette D. Clarke of New York for W. Craig Fugate, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Depart- ment of Homeland Security ................................................................................. 107 Question From Honorable Dina Titus of Nevada for W. Craig Fugate, Admin- istrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Home- land Security ........................................................................................................ 110 Questions From Chairman Bennie G. Thompson of Mississippi for Richard L. Skinner, Inspector General, Department of Homeland Security ................. 110 Questions From Chairman Bennie G. Thompson of Mississippi for Gerald H. Jones, Member, National Institute of Building Sciences ............................. 111 FEMA HOUSING: AN EXAMINATION OF CUR- RENT PROBLEMS AND INNOVATIVE SOLU- TIONS Wednesday, July 8, 2009 U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to call, at 10:03 a.m., in Room 311, Cannon House Office Building, Hon. Bennie G. Thompson [Chair- man of the committee] presiding. Present: Representatives Thompson, Sanchez, Jackson Lee, Cuellar, Carney, Clarke, Richardson, Pascrell, Cleaver, Green, Himes, Kilroy, Massa, Souder, Lungren, McCaul, Dent, Bilirakis, Olson, Cao, and Austria. Chairman THOMPSON [presiding.] The committee will come to order. The committee is meeting today to receive testimony on ‘‘FEMA Housing: An Examination of Current Problems and Innova- tive Solutions.’’ Today’s hearing will examine FEMA’s ability to provide interim housing after a catastrophic event. While we intend this hearing to look toward the future, we must recall the past. Almost 4 years ago, the most destructive series of hurricanes this Nation has seen struck the Gulf Coast. One after another, Katrina, Rita, and Wilma dealt devastating blows to a region of this country that I call home. Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, and Texas all buckled under the force of these storms. Hurricane Katrina destroyed an estimated 300,000 homes, dis- placed 700,000 people, and resulted in the deaths of more than 1,300 individuals. In the aftermath of the rains, the winds, and the broken levees, the people of this region had to begin the process of rebuilding their lives. That is when they looked to FEMA. In response, FEMA purchased over 27,000 travel-trailers off the lot, 25,000 mobile homes at a cost of $850 million, and over 1,700 modular homes at a cost of $52 million. Unfortunately, prior to these purchases, FEMA did not have a plan for how these homes would be used. Some of them remain on lots in Hope, Arkansas; Texarkana, Texas; Purvis, Mississippi; and Baton Rouge, Lou- isiana. We have a picture of that lot in Hope, Arkansas, on the screen. While FEMA’s failure to plan is disturbing, far more disturbing is the Office of Inspector General’s report that, prior to Hurricane Katrina, FEMA was not fully prepared to provide sheltering or transitional housing to victims of a catastrophic disaster. (1) 2 As a result of FEMA’s failure to plan, the last 4 years have been a series of missteps, missed opportunities, and misspent money. We have seen the Federal Government resort to all forms of housing: Cruise ships, converted military barracks, apartments, hotels, and trailer parks. We have even seen the Federal Government pay over $100,000 for mobile homes. Yet we have not seen a comprehensive plan to address the continued dislocation of the families along the gulf. On January 16, 2009, in the last week of the Bush administra- tion, FEMA released a housing strategy. That strategy called for developing an operational plan and building disaster housing capa- bilities. In essence, it is a plan to make a plan; I think that leaves us without a plan. Administrator Fugate, under your leadership, I want FEMA to develop a comprehensive housing plan. This plan can neither ig- nore the people who remain homeless after Katrina nor continue to rely on the same old solutions. I hope this hearing today will begin a dialogue to create innovative, cost-effective, and more tem- porary housing. Housing gives people a sense of security after a disaster. Know- ing you have a home is truly the beginning of recovery. I want to thank our witnesses, and I look forward to the testi- mony. [The