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Auditors to probe Katrina contracts
(AP)
Updated: 2005-09-28 21:50

A day after castigating the federal government's ousted disaster chief, a House panel is hearing pledges from government auditors that they will closely examine millions of dollars in contracts the Bush administration awarded to politically connected companies for Hurricane Katrina relief.


Insurance adjuster Greg Thomas documents damage to a home in the lakeside area of New Orleans Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2005. Thomas is one of the thousands of adjusters working along the gulf coast in the wakes of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. [AP]

The inspectors general from half a dozen agencies, as well as officials from the Government Accountability Office, on Wednesday were addressing a House subcommittee on the Katrina cleanup and announcing several new audits to combat waste and fraud.

They are pledging strong oversight that includes a review of no-bid contracts and close scrutiny of federal employees who now enjoy a $250,000 — rather than a $2,500 — purchase limit for Katrina-related expenses on their government-issued credit cards.

"When so much money is available, it draws people of less than perfect character," H. Walker Feaster, inspector general of the Federal Communications Commission, said. "It underscores the need for internal controls of the money going out."
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