Senator Collins, who chairs the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, which oversees FEMA, is concerned the decision to haul the ice to Maine to place it in cold storage could be a waste of taxpayer dollars. Senator Collins is committed to ensuring that the billions of dollars appropriated for recovery efforts in the wake of Hurricane Katrina are spent effectively and free from waste, fraud and, abuse.
Following is the text of the letter.
September 20, 2005
Dear Acting Undersecretary Paulison and Lt. Gen. Strock:
I am writing to request that you inquire into an apparent decision to send ice initially designated for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts to cold storage in Portland, Maine.
My office has been contacted with information that the federal government paid truck drivers $800 per day to haul bags of ice to the Gulf region for Hurricane Katrina victims, only to order them to turn around, leave the Gulf region, and drive to Portland for storage of the ice at a refrigerated storage facility. More than 200 trucks reportedly might arrive in Portland this week to store their loads of ice. As a result, the resources spent to procure this ice and retain these truck drivers will have been diverted from Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.
If accurate, this situation raises concerns about whether the federal government is using relief resources efficiently in order to provide maximum benefits possible to the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Please let me know as soon as possible: (1) how may trucks carrying ice intended for Hurricane Katrina relief have been diverted to Maine; (2) why the decision occurred; (3) who made the decision; (4) how much it is costing the federal government to transport and store ice in Maine; and (5) why substantially more ice than was needed was purchased in the first place. Sincerely, Susan M. Collins Chairman
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