Biloxi sues FEMA over Katrina aid

The City of Biloxi, Miss., is suing the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for $15.5M that the disaster relief agency refuses to pay for post-Katrina reconstruction of drainage, sewer and water systems. In the lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, the city claims FEMA has rejected $8.8M in project management expenses the agency had previously approved and helped develop. FEMA refuses to cover $6.7M Biloxi needs for project management costs going forward. The city said the reconstruction project would take four years, when it started in 2008, but the lawsuit says the work won’t be finished until December 2024 – about 19 years after Katrina. Biloxi filed the lawsuit after losing its FEMA appeal. The lawsuit accuses FEMA of breaching its contract with the city, and violated the Stafford Act - law that authorizes federal emergency assistance after disasters. FEMA awarded the city more than $344M for infrastructure projects that covered 170 miles. The city spent the $8.8M on project management with HNTB Corp., an employee-owned firm primarily based in California. FEMA rejected the costs because of a 2015 Homeland Security audit that concluded the city awarded a $21M project management contract to HNTB without considering cost, instead focusing on the contractor’s qualifications. (Source: Sun Herald 07/10/19)