Hurricane Recovery
Federal Government Provided a Range of Assistance to Nonprofits following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Gao ID: GAO-10-800 July 30, 2010Residents of the Gulf Coast continue to struggle to recover almost 5 years after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the area in August and September of 2005. In many cases the federal government coordinates with, and provides support to, nonprofit organizations in order to deliver recovery assistance to impacted residents. A better understanding of how the federal government works with nonprofit organizations to provide such assistance may be helpful for recovery efforts on the Gulf Coast as well as for communities affected by major disasters in the future. GAO was asked to describe (1) how the federal government has worked with nonprofit organizations to facilitate Gulf Coast recovery following the 2005 hurricanes and (2) steps the federal government has taken to address challenges to strengthen relationships with nonprofits in the future. Toward this end, GAO reviewed the applicable disaster recovery literature and relevant supporting documents. GAO also interviewed officials from federal, state, and local governments as well as a wide range of nonprofit officials involved in Gulf Coast recovery.
The federal government used a variety of direct and indirect funding programs to support the delivery of human recovery services by nonprofit organizations following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in areas such as housing, long-term case management, and health care. These programs included well-established grants such as the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and its Social Services Block Grant, as well as the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Community Development Block Grant. Programs established in the wake of the 2005 hurricanes also provided funding to nonprofits offering recovery services. These included HHS's Primary Care Access and Stabilization Grant and HUD's Disaster Housing Assistance Program. The federal government also supported nonprofit organizations through coordination and capacity building. For example, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) used Voluntary Agency Liaisons (VAL) to help establish and maintain working relationships between nonprofits and FEMA as well as other federal, state, and local agencies. The Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding in the Department of Homeland Security provided a variety of assistance to nonprofits including problem identification, information sharing, and networking. Other federal agencies also worked to bolster the capacity of nonprofits by providing temporary staff, training, and technical assistance to nonprofit organizations. The federal government is taking steps to address several challenges and strengthen its relationship with nonprofit organizations providing recovery assistance. For example, nonprofit officials GAO spoke with cited challenges with the federal disaster grant process including what they viewed to be complicated record keeping and documentation procedures as well as other requirements to obtain aid. A report issued earlier this year by the President's Advisory Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships recognized the need to ease the administrative burden on nonprofits and contains specific recommendations for action. In an effort to make it easier for nonprofits with limited financial resources to obtain the services of AmeriCorps workers, the Corporation for National and Community Service waived the usual matching requirements in the wake of the 2005 hurricanes. In addition, FEMA is taking steps to address challenges regarding the training of its VAL staff. Following an earlier GAO recommendation that VALs could benefit from additional training regarding federal recovery resources, FEMA issued a VAL handbook and is developing several VAL training courses that it expects to implement by the end of 2010. Finally, although there has been a lack of specific guidance regarding the role of nonprofits in disaster recovery, the federal government has taken steps to address this gap. FEMA and HUD have led a multi-agency effort that resulted in the development of a draft National Disaster Recovery Framework. Among other things, this framework contains specific information about the roles and responsibilities of nonprofits in disaster recovery. GAO is not making new recommendations in this report but discusses the implementation status of a relevant prior recommendation.
GAO-10-800, Hurricane Recovery: Federal Government Provided a Range of Assistance to Nonprofits following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita
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Report to Congressional Requesters:
United States Government Accountability Office:
GAO:
July 2010:
Hurricane Recovery:
Federal Government Provided a Range of Assistance to Nonprofits
following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita:
GAO-10-800:
GAO Highlights:
Highlights of GAO-10-800, a report to congressional requesters.
Why GAO Did This Study:
Residents of the Gulf Coast continue to struggle to recover almost 5
years after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the area in August
and September of 2005. In many cases the federal government
coordinates with, and provides support to, nonprofit organizations in
order to deliver recovery assistance to impacted residents. A better
understanding of how the federal government works with nonprofit
organizations to provide such assistance may be helpful for recovery
efforts on the Gulf Coast as well as for communities affected by major
disasters in the future.
GAO was asked to describe (1) how the federal government has worked
with nonprofit organizations to facilitate Gulf Coast recovery
following the 2005 hurricanes and (2) steps the federal government has
taken to address challenges to strengthen relationships with
nonprofits in the future. Toward this end, GAO reviewed the applicable
disaster recovery literature and relevant supporting documents. GAO
also interviewed officials from federal, state, and local governments
as well as a wide range of nonprofit officials involved in Gulf Coast
recovery.
What GAO Found:
The federal government used a variety of direct and indirect funding
programs to support the delivery of human recovery services by
nonprofit organizations following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in areas
such as housing, long-term case management, and health care. These
programs included well-established grants such as the Department of
Health and Human Services‘ (HHS) Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families and its Social Services Block Grant, as well as the
Department of Housing and Urban Development‘s (HUD) Community
Development Block Grant. Programs established in the wake of the 2005
hurricanes also provided funding to nonprofits offering recovery
services. These included HHS‘s Primary Care Access and Stabilization
Grant and HUD‘s Disaster Housing Assistance Program.
The federal government also supported nonprofit organizations through
coordination and capacity building. For example, the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) used Voluntary Agency Liaisons (VAL) to help
establish and maintain working relationships between nonprofits and
FEMA as well as other federal, state, and local agencies. The Office
of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding in the Department
of Homeland Security provided a variety of assistance to nonprofits
including problem identification, information sharing, and networking.
Other federal agencies also worked to bolster the capacity of
nonprofits by providing temporary staff, training, and technical
assistance to nonprofit organizations.
The federal government is taking steps to address several challenges
and strengthen its relationship with nonprofit organizations providing
recovery assistance. For example, nonprofit officials GAO spoke with
cited challenges with the federal disaster grant process including
what they viewed to be complicated record keeping and documentation
procedures as well as other requirements to obtain aid. A report
issued earlier this year by the President‘s Advisory Council for Faith-
Based and Neighborhood Partnerships recognized the need to ease the
administrative burden on nonprofits and contains specific
recommendations for action. In an effort to make it easier for
nonprofits with limited financial resources to obtain the services of
AmeriCorps workers, the Corporation for National and Community Service
waived the usual matching requirements in the wake of the 2005
hurricanes.
In addition, FEMA is taking steps to address challenges regarding the
training of its VAL staff. Following an earlier GAO recommendation
that VALs could benefit from additional training regarding federal
recovery resources, FEMA issued a VAL handbook and is developing
several VAL training courses that it expects to implement by the end
of 2010. Finally, although there has been a lack of specific guidance
regarding the role of nonprofits in disaster recovery, the federal
government has taken steps to address this gap. FEMA and HUD have led
a multi-agency effort that resulted in the development of a draft
National Disaster Recovery Framework. Among other things, this
framework contains specific information about the roles and
responsibilities of nonprofits in disaster recovery.
What GAO Recommends:
GAO is not making new recommendations in this report but discusses the
implementation status of a relevant prior recommendation.
View [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-10-800] or key
components. For more information, contact Stanley J. Czerwinski at
(202) 512-6806 or czerwinskis@gao.gov.
[End of section]
Contents:
Letter:
Background:
The Federal Government Supported Nonprofits' Delivery of Human
Recovery Services through a Variety of Funding Programs:
The Federal Government Supported Nonprofits through Coordination and
Capacity Building to Facilitate Gulf Coast Hurricane Recovery:
The Federal Government Is Taking Steps to Address Challenges and
Strengthen Relationships with Nonprofits:
Agency Comments and Our Evaluation:
Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology:
Appendix II: GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgments:
Tables:
Table 1: Examples of Nongovernmental Partners Involved in Gulf Coast
Recovery:
Table 2: Selected Federal Funding Programs Providing Support to
Victims of Gulf Coast Hurricanes:
Abbreviations:
CDBG: Community Development Block Grant:
CNCS: Corporation for National and Community Service:
DHS: Department of Homeland Security:
FEMA: Federal Emergency Management Association:
HHS: Department of Health and Human Services:
HUD: Department of Housing and Urban Development:
KAT: Katrina Aid Today:
LANO: Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations:
LFRC: Louisiana Family Recovery Corps:
MCVS: Mississippi Commission for Volunteer Service:
NDRF: National Disaster Recovery Framework:
NNRF: National Nonprofit Relief Framework:
NRF: National Response Framework:
OFC: Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding:
SBA: Small Business Administration:
TANF: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families:
UMCOR: United Methodist Committee on Relief:
VAL: Voluntary Agency Liaison:
VOAD: Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters:
[End of section]
United States Government Accountability Office:
Washington, DC 20548:
July 30, 2010:
The Honorable Joseph I. Lieberman:
Chairman:
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs:
United States Senate:
The Honorable Mary L. Landrieu:
Chairman:
Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Disaster Recovery:
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs:
United States Senate:
Gulf Coast residents continue to struggle with recovery almost 5 years
after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the area in August and
September of 2005. These storms exacted a heavy toll on the lives of
more than 1 million people in the states of Louisiana and Mississippi
that for many continues to this day. The federal government continues
to play a key role in helping these residents rebuild their lives and
communities and, in many cases, it coordinates with nonprofit
organizations for the delivery of recovery assistance.[Footnote 1]
Toward this end, the federal government has partnered with a wide
variety of nonprofits including national, faith-based, and community-
based organizations on a broad range of programs and services
including health care, crisis and mental counseling, education,
housing, and case management. Understanding the benefits and
challenges of the federal government's use of nonprofit organizations
to provide such important human services may be helpful for recovery
efforts on the Gulf Coast as well as for communities affected by major
disasters in the future. A fuller understanding of how the federal
government works with nonprofits in disaster recovery may also prove
useful as efforts begin to ramp up to address the human and economic
impacts of the recent massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
In response to your request, this report describes (1) how the federal
government has worked with nonprofit organizations to facilitate Gulf
Coast recovery following the 2005 hurricanes; and (2) steps the
federal government has taken to address challenges to strengthen
relationships with nonprofits in the future. Given their role in
disaster recovery, and as agreed with your office, we place a focus on
the activities of two components of the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS)--the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the
Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding (OFC)--in
describing how the federal government has worked with nonprofits on
Gulf Coast recovery. This report is one in a series that we have
issued in response to your broader request regarding Gulf Coast
hurricane recovery issues including assisting households in
transitioning to permanent residences, assisting disaster aid
recipients through case management and crisis counseling, and working
with state and local governments to support their efforts in helping
disaster aid recipients recover.[Footnote 2] Since the time of the
storms, we have documented challenges in the federal disaster
preparedness and response system, particularly focusing on the
immediate disaster and short-term recovery periods following the
storms.[Footnote 3] This report focuses primarily on the extended long-
term recovery period following the storms.
To meet our objectives, we reviewed the relevant literature on Gulf
Coast recovery and the role of nonprofit organizations in recovery
efforts including our prior work on disaster recovery and rebuilding.
We also reviewed relevant laws, regulations, and program requirements
for federal recovery-related programs that rely on nonprofit
organizations to deliver services. We conducted interviews in
Louisiana, Mississippi, and Washington, D.C. with federal, state,
local, and nonprofit officials from 48 agencies and organizations that
represented a range of organizations, services, and service delivery
approaches. We did this to understand how the federal government has
worked with nonprofit organizations to facilitate Gulf Coast recovery
following the 2005 hurricanes and the steps the federal government has
taken to address challenges that were encountered. For additional
details on our scope and methodology, please see appendix I.
We conducted this review from February 2008 to July 2010 in accordance
with generally accepted government auditing standards. Those standards
require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain sufficient,
appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable basis for our findings
and conclusions based on our audit objectives. We believe that the
evidence obtained in this report provides a reasonable basis for our
findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives.
Background:
The nonprofit sector is diverse and has a significant presence in the
U.S. economy. Of the estimated 1.7 million tax-exempt organizations in
fiscal year 2008, about 69 percent were religious, charitable, and
similar organizations, or private foundations and were referred to as
501(c)(3) organizations, and about 8 percent were social welfare
organizations.[Footnote 4] Nonprofit organizations provide services in
a wide variety of policy areas such as health care, education, and
human services. As we have previously reported, the federal government
is increasingly partnering with nonprofit organizations because
nonprofit organizations can offer advantages in delivering services
compared to government agencies--they are more flexible, they can act
more quickly, and they often have pre-existing relationships with
local officials and communities.[Footnote 5]
Nonprofit organizations have provided a wide range of direct long-term
assistance and recovery services to those affected by the Gulf Coast
hurricanes including job training, counseling, and housing. Nonprofit
organizations have contributed significant support--financial and non-
financial--to post-Katrina and Rita recovery efforts. At the end of
2009, FEMA officials in Louisiana reported that more than $24 million
in donated dollars, volunteer hours, and goods had been leveraged
through long-term recovery groups to provide permanent housing and
address other unmet needs.[Footnote 6]
In addition, some nonprofit organizations provided technical and
support services to those nonprofit organizations that rendered direct
recovery services to Gulf Coast residents. For example, as of 2007,
the Louisiana Family Recovery Corps (LFRC) had provided more than $20
million in programs, initiatives, and activities in the Greater New
Orleans area since the storms. In its 2005-2008 retrospective, the
Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation reported awarding grants
totaling nearly $29 million to nonprofit organizations involved in
Louisiana's recovery process. Organizations such as the Mississippi
Center for Nonprofits had a well-established communications
infrastructure with hundreds of nonprofits within the state of
Mississippi before the 2005 storms and used this network following the
hurricanes to disseminate grant and technical information, provide
vital resource referrals, and communicate available training workshops
for nonprofit service providers. The Louisiana Association of
Nonprofit Organizations (LANO) was similarly positioned in the state
of Louisiana. According to its officials, LANO serves more than 1,000
nonprofit organizations throughout the state of Louisiana. One of
LANO's field offices is located in New Orleans in a building that it
shares with approximately 30 other nonprofit organizations, many of
whom are providing recovery assistance to residents of the surrounding
neighborhoods which are among the poorest in the Metropolitan New
Orleans area. Table 1 below provides examples of some of the
nongovernmental partners that helped to build the capacity of direct
service providers involved in the Gulf Coast recovery by providing
human resources, guidance, training, funding, and technical assistance.
Table 1: Examples of Nongovernmental Partners Involved in Gulf Coast
Recovery:
Nongovernmental Partner: National Voluntary Organizations Active in
Disaster (National VOAD);
Mission: Coalition of national nonprofit organizations that share
knowledge and resources throughout the disaster cycle to help disaster
survivors and their communities. Members include the American Red
Cross and the Salvation Army.
Nongovernmental Partner: State VOADs in Louisiana and Mississippi;
Mission: Consortium of voluntary organizations active in disasters
within the states of Louisiana and Mississippi whose mission is to
foster, through cooperation in mitigation and response, more effective
service to people affected by disaster.
Nongovernmental Partner: Local/Community VOADs in Louisiana and
Mississippi;
Mission: Consortium of voluntary organizations active in disasters at
the local and community levels.
Nongovernmental Partner: Long-Term Recovery Committees/Organizations
in Louisiana and Mississippi;
Mission: Groups of community leaders, including nonprofit, interfaith,
local government, and private sector leaders, whose mission is to
identify needs that have not been addressed through insurance or
governmental aid and then match up voluntary agency sources and/or
local sources for goods and services to meet those needs.
Nongovernmental Partner: Greater New Orleans Disaster Recovery
Partnership;
Mission: Coalition of 70 plus member agencies including faith-based,
nonprofits, government liaisons, and Long-Term Recovery Organizations
serving those impacted in the Greater New Orleans region and
supporting the region's Long-Term Recovery Committees.
Nongovernmental Partner: Mississippi Commission for Volunteer Service
(MCVS);
Mission: Oversees Mississippi's national service network, helping
local organizations meet local needs and promotes community service
and volunteerism to help meet local needs more effectively.
Nongovernmental Partner: Louisiana Family Recovery Corps (LFRC);
Mission: Facilitates human recovery for Louisiana by partnering with
human service and nonprofits throughout the state and country to
deliver assistance as effectively and efficiently as possible.
Nongovernmental Partner: Mississippi Interfaith Disaster Task Force;
Mission: Umbrella organization for faith-based entities in Mississippi
that facilitates communication, coordination, and collaboration among
organizations involved in disaster preparedness and recovery, and
advocates for vulnerable populations.
Nongovernmental Partner: Mississippi Center for Nonprofits;
Mission: Mississippi's nonprofit management resource service whose
mission is to strengthen the capacity of the nonprofit sector. The
Mississippi Center for Nonprofits is the primary source of management
training, technical information, advice, answers, coaching, and
connection to the nonprofit sector.
Nongovernmental Partner: Louisiana Association of Nonprofit
Organizations (LANO);
Mission: Statewide network of nonprofits, foundations, corporations,
and individuals dedicated to supporting Louisiana's nonprofit sector.
LANO's mission is to strengthen, promote, and build the capacity of
nonprofits through education, advocacy, and member services.
Source: GAO analysis.
[End of table]
One of the primary mechanisms the federal government uses to provide
support to nonprofit organizations is federal grants. Federal grants
are forms of financial assistance from the government to a recipient
for a particular public purpose that is authorized by law. Federal
grant funds flow to the nonprofit sector in various ways. For example,
some grant funds are awarded directly to nonprofits, while others are
first awarded to states, local governments, or other entities and then
awarded to nonprofit service providers. Federal grant funding may also
be awarded to nonprofit subgrantees through contracts. Federal laws,
policies, regulations and guidance associated with federal grants
apply regardless of how federal grant funding reaches the final
recipients.
The Federal Government Supported Nonprofits' Delivery of Human
Recovery Services through a Variety of Funding Programs:
Nonprofit organizations in Louisiana and Mississippi provided numerous
human recovery services to Gulf Coast residents following Hurricanes
Katrina and Rita, and several of those services, including housing,
case management, and mental health services were supported either
directly by the federal government or indirectly through other
organizations receiving federal support. The federal government relied
on both pre-existing as well as newly developed funding programs when
supporting nonprofit organizations. For example the federal government
used well-established grants such as the Temporary Assistance for
Needy Families, Community Development Block Grant, and the Social
Services Block Grant to provide financial and human recovery
assistance to Louisiana and Mississippi residents. Nonprofit as well
as Louisiana and Mississippi state officials also identified
additional federal funding programs that were in place before the
storms that were used to assist in human recovery services such as the
Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) workforce housing
grants, Entitlement Cities, and the Low-income Home Energy Assistance
Program; FEMA's Community Disaster Loans; and the Low Income Housing
Tax Credit program.
There were also several newly created grants with emergency
supplemental funds designed to provide human recovery assistance to
hurricane-affected areas. Some of these grants include the Department
of Health and Human Services's (HHS) Primary Care Access and
Stabilization Grant and HUD's Disaster Housing Assistance Program. See
table 2 for descriptions of selected federal funding programs that
provided assistance to victims of the Gulf Coast hurricanes.
Table 2: Selected Federal Funding Programs Providing Support to
Victims of Gulf Coast Hurricanes:
Federal funding program: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
(TANF);
Description: HHS's TANF program provides assistance and work
opportunities to needy families by granting states, territories, and
tribes the federal funds and wide flexibility to develop and implement
their own welfare programs.
Federal funding program: Community Development Block Grant (CDBG);
Description: HUD's CDBG is a flexible program that provides
communities with resources to address a wide range of unique community
development needs. Its Disaster Recovery Assistance program provides
flexible grants to help cities, counties, and states recover from
presidentially declared disasters, especially in low-income areas,
subject to availability of supplemental appropriations.
Federal funding program: Social Services Block Grant;
Description: Social Services Block Grant funds are distributed by HHS
to enable states to provide social services best suited to meet the
needs of its residents. Such services may include, but are not limited
to: daycare and protective services for children or adults, special
services to persons with disabilities, adoption, case management,
health-related services, transportation, foster care for children or
adults, substance abuse, housing, home-delivered meals,
independent/transitional living, employment services or any other
social services found necessary by the state.
Federal funding program: CDBG workforce housing grant;
Description: This HUD grant targets housing that is affordable to
those between 60 percent and 120 percent of the area median income.
Many households in this group do not qualify for federal programs yet
do not have enough income for adequate housing.
Federal funding program: CDBG Entitlement Communities;
Description: CDBG entitlement program through which HUD allocates
annual grants to larger cities and metropolitan cities and urban
counties to develop viable communities.
Federal funding program: Low-income Home Energy Assistance Program;
Description: The Low-income Home Energy Assistance Program is a
federally funded block grant program administered by HHS and
implemented at the state level. The grant serves individuals and
families from low-income households who seek assistance for their home
energy bills.
Federal funding program: Community Disaster Loans;
Description: FEMA offers these loans to any eligible jurisdiction in a
designated disaster area that has suffered a substantial loss of tax
and other revenue. The jurisdiction must demonstrate a need for
financial assistance to perform its governmental functions to maintain
essential services such as public schools, and fire and police
services.
Federal funding program: Gulf Opportunity Zone Low-Income Housing Tax
Credit Program;
Description: The Gulf Opportunity Zone Low-Income Housing Tax Credit
program was designed to provide tax incentives to encourage the
development of affordable rental housing between 2006 and 2008 in the
areas affected by the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes.
Federal funding program: Primary Care Access and Stabilization
Grant[A];
Description: HHS awarded the Primary Care Access and Stabilization
Grant to Louisiana to help restore primary health care services to low-
income populations.
Federal funding program: Disaster Housing Assistance Program[A];
Description: This HUD program provides temporary long-term housing
rental assistance and case management for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita
households.
Federal funding program: Community Mental Health Services Block Grant;
Description: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration's Community Mental Health Services Block Grant is
awarded to states to provide mental health services to people with
mental disorders. The Mental Health Services Block Grant supports
existing public services and encourages the development of creative
and cost-effective systems of community-based care for people with
serious mental disorders.
Federal funding program: Continuum of Care Program;
Description: HUD's Continuum of Care Program is a set of three
competitively-awarded programs (Supportive Housing Program, Single
Room Occupancy Program, and the Shelter Plus Care Program) created to
address the problems of homelessness in a comprehensive manner with
other federal agencies.
Federal funding program: Disaster Case Management Pilot Program;
Description: FEMA used funds from its Disaster Relief Fund, the major
source of federal disaster recovery assistance for state and local
governments when a disaster occurs, for the state-managed Disaster
Case Management Pilot Program. Through this pilot, case management
services were intended for households in Louisiana and Mississippi
affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita with the primary goal of
helping them achieve sustainable permanent housing.
Federal funding program: Katrina Aid Today (KAT)[B];
Description: FEMA awarded a 2-year case management grant that
channeled $66 million of foreign donations to the United Methodist
Committee on Relief (UMCOR). UMCOR used the grant to establish KAT, a
national consortium of nine social service and voluntary organizations
to provide case management services to victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Source: GAO analysis.
[A] New grants created following the Gulf Coast Hurricanes.
[B] KAT grant-funded activity expired in March 2008.
[End of table]
Louisiana and Mississippi differed in how funds from these programs
were distributed. Louisiana created organizations like the nonprofit
LFRC and the state-level Louisiana Recovery Authority to serve as
custodians and distributors of some of its federal funding, while
Mississippi took advantage of provisions in the National Community
Service Trust Act to establish a state-level commission to oversee the
state's community service block grants.
Using federal funding programs such as those shown in table 2,
nonprofit organizations have provided a wide range of recovery
services to residents affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita
including housing, long-term case management, and a variety of
counseling services (including crisis management and substance abuse).
According to nonprofit officials in both Louisiana and Mississippi, as
of early 2010, Gulf Coast residents continue to need services in these
areas. CDBG funds are being used by Providence Community Housing, a
collaborative effort of Catholic housing and social service
organizations in the New Orleans community, to build, rebuild, or
repair 7,000 units of affordable houses and apartments over a 5-year
period that began in 2006. Some nonprofit officials also told us that
long-term case management services were still widely needed. For
example, according to officials with the Lutheran Episcopal Services
in Mississippi, as of the summer of 2008, this nonprofit had provided
case management services for several years to Katrina-affected
residents in the Mississippi Gulf Coast region through the efforts of
approximately 60 case managers who worked with clients throughout
Mississippi.
Some nonprofits in our review were instrumental in helping other
nonprofits access available federal funds in order to deliver much
needed services. The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), for
example, also served as the umbrella grants manager for Katrina Aid
Today (KAT), a national consortium of nine subgrantees.[Footnote 7]
The consortium was required to provide matching funds and was able to
put up $30 million of in-kind funds, while FEMA channeled foreign
donations of $66 million over a 2-year period.[Footnote 8] At the
completion of its grant-funded activity in March 2008, KAT had enabled
case management services for approximately 73,000 households. As the
umbrella grants manager, UMCOR provided financial compliance
monitoring, technical assistance and training to the nine consortium
members. Nonprofits such as Louisiana's Odyssey House and Mercy Family
Center also provided crisis, mental health, and substance abuse
counseling made possible as the result of federal funds.[Footnote 9]
In addition, according to officials from the Catholic Charities
Archdiocese of New Orleans, their organization contracted with the
Louisiana State Office of Mental Health and the resulting Louisiana
Spirit hurricane recovery project, funded by FEMA, helped provide
intervention and mental health services to its clients.
The Federal Government Supported Nonprofits through Coordination and
Capacity Building to Facilitate Gulf Coast Hurricane Recovery:
Nonprofits Reported Usefulness of Coordination with FEMA Voluntary
Agency Liaisons:
The National Response Framework (NRF) designates the FEMA Voluntary
Agency Liaison (VAL) as the primary liaison to the nonprofit
community. VALs are responsible for initiating and maintaining a
working relationship between FEMA, federal, state, and local agencies
and nonprofit organizations. VALs also advise state emergency agencies
on the roles and responsibilities of nonprofit organizations active in
the recovery.[Footnote 10] The FEMA VAL system is staffed by a
combination of permanent federal employees as well as temporary and
term-specified employees whose work focuses on a specific disaster.
Among the permanent FEMA employees are 10 regional VALs--one for each
FEMA regional office--along with an additional 2 VALs in the Caribbean
Area and Pacific Area offices.[Footnote 11] FEMA also has five VAL
staff based at headquarters whose role is to provide the overall VAL
program and policy development, the national perspective, training and
development to states and regions, support services in the field,
coordination with other DHS and FEMA entities with nonprofits as
stakeholders, and oversight of the FEMA Donations and Volunteer
Management Program including the National Donations Management
Network. FEMA also deploys Disaster Assistance Employees, reservists
who can be called up to carry out the VAL role in local communities
following a specific disaster and, depending on the size of the
disaster, typically serve for a period of approximately 50-60 days
with a maximum of 50 consecutive weeks in a calendar year.[Footnote
12] As of March 31, 2010, FEMA had 90 disaster assistance employees in
its reserve VAL cadre. In addition, after the Gulf Coast hurricanes,
FEMA hired 40 "Katrina VALs," of which 10 are remaining in Louisiana
as of May 24, 2010.[Footnote 13] These are term-limited federal
employees hired locally who are designated to specifically address
Katrina-related issues and 10 remain based on FEMA's need for their
continued work.[Footnote 14] FEMA is not planning to retain these
individuals after Katrina-related work is finished.
FEMA's VAL program received general approval from state, local, and
nonprofit officials we spoke with. Several nonprofit officials told us
that VALs were instrumental in helping initially set up and guide the
operation of long-term recovery committees. Officials from state
Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD) in Louisiana and
Mississippi spoke highly of the respective regional VALs and said they
were involved with the VOADs on a regular basis helping coordination
between the VOADs and nonprofits. And officials from various nonprofit
organizations cited how useful they found the VAL coordination. For
example, VALs helped extend the federal government's reach to the
nonprofit sector by also working with state-level intermediaries, such
as the Louisiana Family Recovery Corps (LFRC) and the Mississippi
Commission for Volunteer Service (MCVS), whose responsibilities
included the coordination of nonprofit service providers active in the
recovery effort. The LFRC was created in 2005 following the Gulf Coast
hurricanes and was designated by the Louisiana legislature in 2007 as
the state's coordinator for human resources. The MCVS is the state's
office of volunteerism through statute and is an affiliate of the
federal Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) and was
designated by the Governor of Mississippi to coordinate the general
activities of the nonprofit sector and oversee the implementation of
FEMA's Phase I and Phase II Disaster Case Management Pilot program
specifically. Officials from the Mississippi Center for Nonprofits and
the Mississippi Interfaith Disaster Task Force said they had good
working relationships with the FEMA VALs. Further, officials from
state entities such as the Louisiana Recovery Authority characterized
their partnership with FEMA VALs as successful and one of the best
examples of local coordination they encountered.
Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding Provided a
Variety of Assistance to Nonprofits Including Problem Identification,
Information Sharing, and Networking:
In November 2005, the President issued an executive order establishing
the Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding (OFC)
with the broad mission of supporting recovery efforts following
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. OFC was created as a response to the
unprecedented rebuilding challenges presented by these storms as well
as concerns regarding the lack of coordination in the government's
initial response to these events. Although the OFC was originally
scheduled to expire in November 2008, the President extended it
several times until the office closed on April 1, 2010.[Footnote 15]
In previous work on OFC, we identified four key functions performed by
the office, which provides a useful framework for understanding how
the office provided support for nonprofits working on Gulf Coast
recovery.[Footnote 16] Nonprofits were directly involved in three of
these four OFC functions.
First, OFC helped nonprofits to identify and address obstacles to
recovery. These obstacles included both challenges facing specific
organizations as well as broad problems facing entire communities of
which nonprofits were a part. An example of the former occurred when
OFC worked with MCVS and FEMA to address contracting challenges
involving FEMA's Disaster Case Management Phase II pilot program. An
example of the latter is OFC's sponsorship of a series of forums and
workout sessions, which brought together a diverse group of
stakeholders including numerous nonprofits, foundations, and faith-
based organizations to discuss impediments to recovery and try to
identify potential solutions. The topics of these sessions have
included crime, education reform, and economic development.
Second, OFC supported nonprofits by sharing and communicating a
variety of recovery information. One example of this was the joint OFC-
FEMA effort known as the Transparency Initiative that began in
February of 2008. This Web-based information sharing effort enabled
interested stakeholders, including nonprofits, to track the status of
selected public infrastructure rebuilding projects (such as a school
or hospital) by providing detailed information on the Public
Assistance Grants funds allocated for the project and the project's
status. The initiative has received positive feedback from a range of
nonprofits involved in Gulf Coast building including Catholic
Charities and Tulane University. OFC also worked to provide updates
and other information relating to Gulf Coast recovery though a
nonprofit outreach strategy, which has changed and developed over
time. During the first few years of the OFC's operation, although the
office compiled a listing of many nonprofits involved in recovery and
rebuilding activities, it focused its outreach efforts primarily on
large, well-known, national nonprofit organizations, such as Catholic
Charities, the Southern Baptist Convention, and the United Methodist
Committee on Relief. These organizations had the capacity to work with
the government and, in many cases, already had pre-existing
relationships with federal and state officials.
OFC largely relied on these national organizations to relay
information to the local level though their various local partners and
affiliates. Given this approach, it is perhaps not surprising that
many of the nonprofit officials we spoke with in both Louisiana and
Mississippi told us that initially they did not have any direct
interaction with OFC following the hurricanes. Since 2009, however,
several nonprofit and local officials we spoke with in Louisiana and
Mississippi said that OFC has conducted considerably more outreach and
become much more involved with them and commended the OFC's current
efforts. According to a senior OFC official, in 2009, the office
changed its nonprofit outreach to place a heavier emphasis on direct
contact with smaller organizations at the grassroots level. Toward
that end, the Federal Coordinator frequently visited Louisiana and
Mississippi to personally conduct outreach to a variety of smaller
nonprofit organizations and subsequently built a database of 300 to
400 nonprofit organizations.
A third way OFC assisted nonprofits is through their facilitation of
networks and dialogue among a wide range of recovery stakeholders from
federal, state, and local governments, other nonprofits, and as well
as the private sector. OFC brought a diverse group of stakeholders
together to meet each other and discuss issues of common interest
through numerous forums and roundtables. In contrast to the workout
sessions mentioned above, the primary goal of these meetings was not
to focus on a specific set of challenges, but rather to help foster
and expand connections among members of the Gulf Coast recovery
community and provide a forum for them to share information with each
other. Similar to what took place with OFC's approach toward
information sharing with nonprofits, the way the office fostered
networking changed over the years. In its final year of operation, OFC
moved away from solely relying on formal events like forums and
roundtables to increasingly making use of less formal meetings and
networking events. For example, the Federal Coordinator at the time
said the office placed a high priority on informal and direct
interactions with communities on the ground, with whom she and her
staff spent more than half of their time. In addition, OFC facilitated
connections between nonprofits that were in the process of applying
for recovery grants and other organizations that have had prior
success in obtaining such funds and were willing to share their
knowledge and expertise.
Finally, in its last year of its operation, the OFC facilitated
meetings between the White House Office of Faith-Based and
Neighborhood Partnership centers established within 12 federal
agencies including DHS, HUD, and the Small Business Administration
(SBA) with local community and faith-based organizations.
Additionally, during its last year of operation, OFC worked to ensure
that secretaries of federal agencies relevant to disaster recovery
established a senior-level advisor to serve as a point person with OFC
as well as the nonprofit organizations on the ground. Some of the
federal agencies that established this position included DHS, HUD,
SBA, HHS, and the United States Department of Agriculture.
Other Agencies Also Bolstered the Capacity of Nonprofits by Providing
Temporary Staff, Training, and Technical Assistance:
Other federal agencies also provided important nonmonetary assistance
to nonprofit organizations involved in Gulf Coast recovery. Federal
agencies provided trained volunteers and volunteer management services
to community-based nonprofits to help them meet increased demand for
services. For example, CNCS reported that it provided more than $160
million worth of resources, including more than 105,000 volunteers who
contributed more than 5.4 million hours to Gulf Coast states
recovering from the 2005 hurricanes. Some of the nonprofit officials
we interviewed indicated that they had either hired an AmeriCorps
worker or Vista volunteer, or were familiar with their work as a
result of partnering with them on various recovery projects.
Nonprofits such as Rebuilding New Orleans Together were able to take
advantage of a waiver that enabled FEMA and CNCS to cover the cost of
some volunteer stipends.
Federal agencies also provided nonprofit organizations with training
and technical assistance that helped them manage federal grant program
requirements. For example, nonprofit officials attended a 2008 White
House sponsored conference designed to highlight and strengthen the
role of faith-based and community-based organizations in disaster
relief and preparedness. The conference, held in New Orleans,
Louisiana, offered workshops hosted by federal agencies including the
Departments of Justice, Agriculture, Labor, HHS, HUD, Education,
Homeland Security, Commerce, and Veteran's Affairs; the Agency for
International Development; and SBA. These workshops provided technical
assistance and training designed to help faith-based and community-
based nonprofits understand the federal grant process as well as
provide networking opportunities with the federal government.
The Federal Government Is Taking Steps to Address Challenges and
Strengthen Relationships with Nonprofits:
Challenges Experienced by Nonprofits in Obtaining Federal Disaster
Assistance Led to Efforts to Address Some Concerns:
The rules and requirements that typically accompany federal grants
along with the limitations of many nonprofits' financial and
administrative capacity made it difficult for some organizations to
access federal funding to deliver recovery services. Our previous work
has shown that many nonprofits struggle to accomplish their mission
because they lack the resources that would allow them to better manage
their finances and strengthen their administrative or technology
infrastructure.[Footnote 17] We have recently reported that federal
grants typically do not provide support for these types of overhead
costs, which include administrative or infrastructure costs.[Footnote
18] In light of this gap, officials from several nonprofits told us
that they believed the record keeping, documentation, and reporting
requirements of federal grants were too complicated and cumbersome.
Nonprofit organizations' perceptions of federal accountability
requirements sometimes also served as an impediment to obtaining
funding from the federal government because officials at these
organizations perceived compliance with federal grant requirements to
be too resource-intensive and not worth meeting the requirements that
accompanied such funds. Officials at one nonprofit raised concerns
about what they characterized as the "massive" documentation required
by the state to justify reimbursements for costs incurred in
implementing federal grant programs. According to these nonprofit
officials, paperwork sometimes had to be submitted repeatedly and
state officials, who were supposed to facilitate communication between
federal agencies and nonprofit service providers, did not always know
what documents were required. Further, these officials stated that the
preparation of the required reimbursement documentation consumed
approximately 30 hours of staff time each month and that did not
include the time required to comply with other reporting requirements
under the grant. According to some state recovery officials, the fear
of being audited or being found noncompliant with program regulations
caused many nonprofits to shy away from federal disaster assistance,
much to the detriment of the state which relies on nonprofits to
provide services after a disaster. One nonprofit official, who chose
not to apply for federal funds, explained that even if he had the
resources to hire the additional staff to fill out all the federal
grant paperwork, he would rather put those resources into a direct
service, such as rebuilding damaged homes in the community. While
recognizing the burdens that may accompany meeting federal grant
requirements, it is also important to acknowledge the potential value
of such requirements in helping minimize fraud, waste, and abuse and
ensuring fiscal accountability to the American taxpayer.
Nonprofit officials we spoke with were also concerned with the
distribution of federal grant funds. Officials from several nonprofits
reported that some federal grant awards were late, putting additional
strain on the limited resources of smaller community-based
organizations. For example, funding for the FEMA Phase II pilot
program for disaster case management was not awarded until July 2008
in Mississippi and October 2008 in Louisiana although the funding
period began in June 2008.[Footnote 19] Phase II grantees had already
hired staff and began delivering case management services in
anticipation of grant funding being available. As a result, some
nonprofits had difficulty meeting expenses while they waited for grant
funding to be awarded. As we have previously reported, many of the
smaller case management organizations were unable to find alternative
resources to pay the case managers hired in June and had to lay off
caseworkers while awaiting for federal funding to be made available.
[Footnote 20] On the other hand, larger organizations such as Catholic
Charities sometimes had to wait up to 1 year to receive reimbursement
for as much as $1 million in grant funds without having to take such
actions.
In recognition of the widespread devastation that resulted from the
2005 hurricanes and to address the challenges associated with
navigating the federal aid process, Congress passed legislation to
amend several assistance programs that helped nonprofit organizations
deliver federally supported recovery assistance to residents of the
Gulf Coast. Most notably, provisions in the Post-Katrina Emergency
Management Reform Act of 2006 expanded eligibility requirements for
nonprofit organizations to receive FEMA grant assistance, which
enabled some nonprofit organizations to receive financial assistance
to rebuild their storm-damaged facilities to better serve their
clients.[Footnote 21] Congress also passed special legislation that
provided additional cash assistance to hurricane victims through the
TANF block grant.[Footnote 22] In order to deploy more highly trained
workers to impacted communities, CNCS waived state matching
requirements for sponsoring AmeriCorps workers in Louisiana and
counted the cost of housing them as an in-kind match for sponsoring
AmeriCorps workers. These program waivers made it easier for
nonprofits with limited financial resources to sponsor AmeriCorps
workers.
In February 2009, President Obama created the President's Advisory
Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships in order to
bring together leaders and experts in fields related to the work of
faith-based and neighborhood organizations. The council was designed
to make recommendations to the government on how to improve
partnerships. In March 2010, the council issued its first report
which, while not focused on Hurricane Katrina and Rita recovery
efforts, included recommendations that could be useful for long-term
disaster recovery.[Footnote 23] For example, the report recommended
providing greater flexibility for the coordination and integration of
government funds designated for specific program activities. The
report went on to suggest that federal agencies develop rules and
regulations to encourage coordination and integration of programs and
services, and that agencies be mandated to be receptive to requests
for rulemaking changes that were aimed at facilitating coordination
and integration. In addition, the council recommended that in order to
ease the burden on nonprofit social service agencies, agencies remove
barriers to service provision such as matching fund requirements,
burdensome reporting and regulations, and slow payments and
reimbursements.
FEMA Has Taken Steps to Address Gaps in VAL Training and to Improve
Information Sharing:
While some recovery officials and nonprofit representatives we spoke
with held generally favorable opinions about the usefulness of the
assistance provided by FEMA VALs, they identified opportunities for
improvement in the areas of training and information sharing.
A senior FEMA official told us that, following Hurricane Katrina, the
need for VALs considerably outstripped the supply then available in
the VAL cadre requiring FEMA to hire temporary VALs without much
experience. In addition, ensuring continuity presented a challenge as
FEMA experienced a large turnover among VALs in the first year after
the disaster. FEMA officials acknowledged that inconsistent
performance among VALs was partly due to frequent changes in assigned
staff as Disaster Assistance Employee staff was rotated in and out of
VAL positions in the months immediately following the storms. However,
they noted that this became less of a concern as time passed and more
experienced VALs were brought on board and as VALs were hired from the
local population and therefore able to remain in their roles for
longer periods. FEMA offered several independent study disaster
training courses for VALs, including one that is directly related to
VAL duties entitled "The Role of Voluntary Agencies in Emergency
Management." FEMA also provided some basic in-person training to VALs
in the field, but this training was provided on an ad hoc basis
primarily by a single regional VAL. This official provided training
for two different regions (a total of 13 states) as well as recovery
training to VALs in Louisiana and Mississippi following Hurricanes
Katrina and Rita while also handling his regular regional VAL duties.
We have previously reported that VALs could benefit from additional
training on federal programs and resources. For example, we found that
FEMA did not provide training for VALs on Public Assistance Grant
policies and recommended that the agency provide role-specific
training to VAL staff, including instruction on the Public Assistance
Grant program and the policies and opportunities that apply for
nonprofit organizations.[Footnote 24] FEMA has taken steps to respond
to our recommendation as well as address other training issues in its
VAL program. These include changes that FEMA is making that address
our previous report recommendation that FEMA provide role-specific
training to VALs. For example, FEMA has issued a VAL Handbook, which
provides a written guide on essential VAL activities and procedures,
and has been revising its VAL training for the past year. It expects
to complete three VAL-specific courses by the end of 2010. One of the
courses FEMA officials are working on is an introductory VAL course,
for which they are holding focus groups with regional VALs and
voluntary agencies for their input. FEMA expects to pilot this course
in the fall of 2010. FEMA is also developing a volunteer management
course for which they are pulling subject matter experts from the
National VOAD, recovery committees, and from state and local
officials. The VAL program's expectation is that the revised VAL
training program will be incorporated into a larger FEMA initiative
involving credentialing of disaster workers.
FEMA officials also acknowledged that VALs would benefit from a
mechanism through which they can more effectively share information
and best practices that are drawn from a variety of different sources
(such as VALs, local recovery partners, and the National VOAD). GAO's
guidance on internal controls encourages agency management to provide
effective internal communications as one way to promote an appropriate
internal control environment.[Footnote 25] This guidance suggests
agencies establish mechanisms to (1) allow for the easy flow of
information down, across, and up within the organization, and (2)
enable employees to recommend improvements in operations. Consistent
with this concept, FEMA has taken steps to improve information sharing
in its VAL program. More specifically, FEMA is developing a knowledge
repository known as the VAL Community of Interest on an internal DHS
network site. Once operational, FEMA officials expect the site to
function as a repository of resources, planning, and best practices
that will facilitate information sharing and be readily available to
the entire VAL community, even when they are deployed in the field.
Lack of Long-Term Recovery Guidance Regarding Partnerships with
Nonprofits Is Being Addressed by the Federal Government and Others:
Collaboration is essential for an effective partnership between the
wide range of participants involved in the disaster recovery process.
The National Response Framework (NRF) defines the roles of federal,
state, local, tribal governments; the private sector; and voluntary
organizations in response to disasters.[Footnote 26] The NRF, which
became effective in March 2008, designates 15 emergency support
functions that address specific emergency disaster response needs.
[Footnote 27] We have previously reported on the importance of
defining roles and responsibilities in both response and recovery.
[Footnote 28] FEMA acknowledges that recent disasters highlight the
need for additional guidance, structures and leadership to improve
support and management of recovery activities.[Footnote 29]
As we have recently reported, the federal government has taken steps
to strengthen the nation's disaster recovery process.[Footnote 30] In
2006, Congress required FEMA to develop a national disaster recovery
strategy for federal agencies involved in recovery.[Footnote 31] In
response to this mandate, FEMA and HUD are leading a diverse group of
federal agencies and other organizations to develop the National
Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF). Among the NDRF's objectives is to
define the federal, state, local, tribal, nonprofit, private-sector,
and the individual citizen's roles in disaster recovery. To date, the
NDRF working group has facilitated various meetings as well as
developed a Web site for input from federal, state, tribal and local
government leaders; recovery-assistance providers; nonprofit
organizations; private sector representatives; and interested
citizens. The group has developed a draft framework, which includes
details about expected roles and responsibilities of nonprofits in
disaster recovery.
In addition, at the President's request, the secretaries of DHS and
HUD are co-chairing a Long-Term Disaster Recovery Working Group
composed of the secretaries and administrators of 20 federal
departments, agencies, and offices. This working group was established
at the end of September 2009 and joined the NDRF effort started by
FEMA in August 2009. This effort to examine lessons learned from
previous catastrophic disaster recovery efforts includes areas for
improved collaboration and methods for building capacity within state,
local, and tribal governments as well as within the nonprofit, faith-
based, and private sectors. The working group is charged with
developing a report to the President, which will provide
recommendations on how to improve long-term disaster recovery.
The National VOAD is leading a parallel effort to establish a National
Nonprofit Relief Framework (NNRF) intended to complement the NRF and
NDRF by providing detailed guidance on nonprofit organization roles
and responsibilities, programs, polices, and interagency protocols.
FEMA is also involved in this effort and, according to information
provided by FEMA officials, this document will serve as a major source
of program coordination information for both government and non-
governmental organizations involved in all phases of emergency
management. According to these officials, the NNRF will help fill a
planning void that currently exists regarding what is known about the
disaster response and recovery capacity of the nonprofit sector. A
final version of the NNRF is expected to be issued in December 2010.
In addition to the guidance that frameworks like the NDRF and NNRF can
offer, cooperative agreements provide another mechanism that can
further clarify the roles and responsibilities of specific nonprofits
involved in recovery activities. Several nonprofit and federal
officials we spoke with identified such agreements or memorandums of
understanding established between FEMA and specific nonprofit
organizations as a tool to clarify expectations and avoid confusion
that can arise in the wake of a disaster. These cooperative agreements
could provide a road map for federal-nonprofit partnerships by
outlining the functional capabilities and resources of each partner,
and by outlining implementation strategies for delivering critical
recovery services. Such agreements could also help avoid duplication
of efforts among the various disaster recovery players and expedite
recovery efforts.
Agency Comments and Our Evaluation:
We provided a draft of this report to the Secretary of Homeland
Security for review and comment. DHS concurred with the report but did
not provide us with formal written comments. The department did
provide several technical clarifications that we incorporated as
appropriate. We also sent drafts of the relevant sections of this
report to cognizant officials from the nonprofits involved in the
specific examples cited in this report and incorporated their comments
as appropriate.
As agreed with your offices, unless you publicly announce the contents
of this report earlier, we plan no further distribution until 30 days
from the date of this letter. We will then provide copies of this
report to other interested congressional committees; the Secretary of
Homeland Security; the Administrator of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency; and federal, state, local, and nonprofit officials
we contacted for this review. This report also is available at no
charge on the GAO Web site at [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov]. If you
have any questions about this report, please contact me at (202) 512-
6806 or at czerwinskis@gao.gov. Contact points for our Offices of
Congressional Relations and Public Affairs may be found on the last
page of this report. Key contributors to this report are listed in
appendix II.
Signed by:
Stanley J. Czerwinski:
Director, Strategic Issues:
[End of section]
Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology:
To address our first objective on how the federal government has
worked with nonprofit organizations to facilitate Gulf Coast Recovery
following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, we first conducted a
systematic review and synthesis of GAO and other reports to identify
(a) the range of federal programs used to support Gulf Coast recovery;
(b) the types of nonprofit organizations that provide federally-
supported recovery assistance; and (c) the types of service delivery
mechanisms federal agencies used when working with nonprofit
organizations. For this objective we also interviewed officials
involved in recovery efforts from federal, state, and local
governments, as well as officials from nonprofit organizations, to
help us refine our understanding of the range of federal government
relationships with nonprofit organizations active in Gulf Coast
recovery. To address our second objective describing steps taken by
the federal government to address challenges encountered when working
with nonprofits to deliver recovery services, we conducted interviews
with federal, state, local, and nonprofit officials and obtained
supporting documentation of federal actions where appropriate.
We focused our review on Louisiana and Mississippi because these two
states sustained the most damage from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and
thus accounted for a large portion of the federal funding made
available to Gulf Coast states for recovery. In addition, given their
role in disaster recovery, we placed a focus on the activities of two
components of the Department of Homeland Security--the Federal
Emergency Management Agency and the Office of the Federal Coordinator
for Gulf Coast Rebuilding--in describing how the federal government
has worked with nonprofits on Gulf Coast recovery.
We selected a variety of individuals and organizations in order to
capture a wide range of perspectives including (a) the range of types
of nonprofit organizations active in Gulf Coast recovery, (b) the
broad range of federally supported recovery services delivered to
residents of the affected areas, (c) the range of service delivery
mechanisms used to deliver services, and (d) individuals and
organizations identified through our literature review, informational
interviews, and/or referrals received during the course of our work.
In total, we interviewed federal, state, local, and nonprofit
officials from the following 48 agencies and organizations. While
findings from our interviews cannot be generalized, this approach
allowed us to capture important variability within the various sectors.
Federal Officials:
* Corporation for National and Community Service, Washington, D.C.
* Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Headquarters, Washington,
D.C.
* FEMA Louisiana Transitional Recovery Office, New Orleans, La.
* FEMA Mississippi Transitional Recovery Office, Biloxi, Miss.
* FEMA Region IV, Atlanta, Ga.
* FEMA Region VI, Denton, Tex.
* Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding,
Washington, D.C.
State Officials:
* Louisiana Department of Social Services, Baton Rouge, La.
* Louisiana Recovery Authority, Baton Rouge, La.
* Louisiana Serve Commission, Baton Rouge, La.
* Mississippi Department of Human Services, Jackson, Miss.
* Mississippi Office of the Governor, Office of Recovery and Renewal,
Jackson, Miss.
Local Officials:
* Office of Emergency Preparedness, City of New Orleans, New Orleans,
La.
* Office of Intergovernmental Relations, City of New Orleans, New
Orleans, La.
Nonprofit Organizations:
* America Speaks, Washington, D.C.
* Annunciation Mission, Free Church of the Annunciation, New Orleans,
La.
* Back Bay Mission, United Church of Christ, Biloxi, Miss.
* Baptist Association of Greater New Orleans, New Orleans, La.
* Baptist Community Ministries, New Orleans, La.
* Broadmoor Development Corporation, New Orleans, La.
* Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans, New Orleans, La.
* Greater Light Ministries, New Orleans, La.
* Greater New Orleans Disaster Recovery Partnership, New Orleans, La.
* Hope Community Development Agency, Biloxi, Miss.
* Israelite Baptist Church, New Orleans, La.
* Katrina Relief, Poplarville, Miss.
* Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations, Baton Rouge and
New Orleans, La.
* Louisiana Family Recovery Corps, Baton Rouge, La.
* Louisiana Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, Baton Rouge,
La.
* Lutheran Episcopal Services in Mississippi, Jackson, Miss.
* Mississippi Center for Nonprofits, Jackson, Miss.
* Mississippi Commission for Volunteer Service, Jackson, Miss.
* Mississippi Gulf Coast Community Foundation, Gulfport, Miss.
* Mississippi Interfaith Disaster Task Force, Biloxi, Miss.
* Mississippi Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, Jackson,
Miss.
* Rand Gulf States Policy Institute, New Orleans, La.
* Rebuilding Together New Orleans, New Orleans, La.
* Recovery Assistance, Inc., Ministries, Biloxi, Miss.
* Restore, Rebuild, Recover Southeast Mississippi (R3SM), Hattiesburg,
Miss.
* Salvation Army, Jackson, Miss.
* St. Bernard Project, Chalmette, La.
* The Advocacy Center, New Orleans, La.
* Trinity Christian Community, New Orleans, La.
* Tulane University Center for Public Service, New Orleans, La.
* United Methodist Committee on Relief/Katrina Aid Today, New York,
N.Y.
* United Way for the Greater New Orleans Area, New Orleans, La.
* Volunteers of America of Greater New Orleans, New Orleans, La.
* Waveland Citizens Fund, Poplarville, Miss.
We conducted this performance audit from February 2008 through July
2010 in accordance with generally accepted government auditing
standards. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit
to obtain sufficient, appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable
basis for our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives.
We believe that the evidence obtained provides a reasonable basis for
our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. We
requested comments on a draft of this report from the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS). DHS concurred with the report but did not
provide formal written comments. However, the department had several
technical clarifications that we incorporated as appropriate. We also
provided drafts of relevant sections of this report to state, local,
and nonprofit officials involved in the specific examples cited in
this report, and incorporated their comments as appropriate.
[End of section]
Appendix II: GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgments:
GAO Contact:
Stanley J. Czerwinski, (202) 512-6806 or czerwinskis@gao.gov:
Acknowledgments:
In addition to the contact named above, Peter Del Toro (Assistant
Director); Michelle Sager (Assistant Director); Jyoti Gupta; Kathleen
Drennan; Anthony Patterson; and Jessica Thomsen made key contributions
to this report.
[End of section]
Footnotes:
[1] The tax-exempt sector is often referred to as the nonprofit
sector. For the purposes of this review, we define "nonprofit
organization" as any organization having federal tax-exempt status as
approved by the Internal Revenue Service under section 501(c)(3) of
the Internal Revenue Code and is used interchangeably with the terms
"voluntary organization" and "voluntary agency."
[2] Other products associated with this request include: GAO, Disaster
Assistance: Federal Assistance for Permanent Housing Primarily
Benefited Homeowners; Opportunities Exist to Better Target Rental
Housing Needs, [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-10-17]
(Washington, D.C.: Jan. 14, 2010); Disaster Housing: FEMA Needs More
Detailed Guidance and Performance Measures to Help Ensure Effective
Assistance after Major Disasters, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-796] (Washington, D.C.: Aug. 28,
2009); Hurricane Katrina: Federal Grants Have Helped Health Care
Organizations Provide Primary Care, but Challenges Remain, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-588] (Washington, D.C.: July 2009);
Hurricane Katrina: Barriers to Mental Health Services for Children
Persist in Greater New Orleans, Although Federal Grants Are Helping to
Address Them, [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-563]
(Washington, D.C.: July 13, 2009); Disaster Assistance: Greater
Coordination and an Evaluation of Programs' Outcomes Could Improve
Disaster Case Management, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-561] (Washington, D.C.: July 8,
2009); and Disaster Assistance: Federal Efforts to Assist Group Site
Residents with Employment, Services for Families with Children, and
Transportation, [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-81]
(Washington, D.C.: Dec. 11, 2008).
[3] See GAO, Disaster Recovery: Past Experiences Offer Insights for
Recovering from Hurricanes Ike and Gustav and Other Natural Disasters,
[hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-08-1120] (Washington,
D.C.: Sept. 26, 2008); Homeland Security: Observations on DHS and FEMA
Efforts to Prepare for and Respond to Major and Catastrophic Disasters
and Address Related Recommendations and Legislation, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-07-1142T] (Washington, D.C.: July 31,
2007); and Disaster Assistance: Better Planning Needed for Housing
Victims of Catastrophic Disasters, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-07-88] (Washington, D.C.: Feb. 28,
2007).
[4] U.S. Internal Revenue Service, Data Book, [hyperlink,
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-soi/08db25eo.xls] (accessed Mar. 25, 2010).
[5] GAO, Nonprofit Sector: Increasing Numbers and Key Role in
Delivering Federal Services, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-07-1084T] (Washington, D.C.: July 24,
2007).
[6] According to FEMA officials, this figure may be understated as
nonprofits and long-term recovery committees do not have a central
repository of all dollars spent. Officials stated this figure does not
include dollars spent by voluntary agencies that did not flow through
the long-term recovery committee process.
[7] See [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-561].
[8] While UMCOR had originally planned for matching funds, many
nonprofits were not in a position financially to put up a match so
that requirement was never enforced, although some did do so.
[9] See [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-588].
[10] According to FEMA, among the specific job duties of VALS include
the following: (1) assisting voluntary agencies in the development and
promotion of state and local Voluntary Organizations Active in
Disasters and other coalitions such as unmet needs/resource
coordination committees for long-term recovery; (2) initiating and
maintaining a close working relationship between FEMA and voluntary
agencies including soliciting participation of the voluntary agencies
in preparedness activities such as training and exercises to improve
response and recovery capacity; (3) providing technical advice to FEMA
Regional and Area Offices, other federal agencies, and state emergency
management officials regarding the roles and responsibilities of
voluntary agencies active in disaster and emergency situations; (4)
assisting and collaborating with other FEMA Regional and Area Offices
staff in the development and maintenance of emergency response and
recovery plans to ensure that voluntary agencies' capabilities,
specifically as they relate to emergency assistance, mass shelter and
feeding, donations management, and other voluntary agency disaster
relief activities are recognized in the plans; (5) assisting with the
collection and dissemination of information concerning emergency
incidents, including initial damage assessment, emergency response
activities, and continued response and long-term recovery activities/
plans of voluntary agencies; (6) assisting and supporting the FEMA
Individual Assistance officer on disaster operations in providing
consultative support to voluntary agency leadership and encouraging
collaboration among voluntary agencies; and (7) providing or making
available to the voluntary agencies information on the status of
federal and state response and recovery programs and activities.
[11] According to FEMA VAL officials, currently there is one vacancy
in the Region 9 Pacific Area Office.
[12] As of 2009, VALs are no longer under the FEMA headquarters'
direction but instead are under each FEMA Region Individual Assistance
office's direction. However, FEMA's VAL headquarters is responsible
for establishing memorandums of understanding with nonprofit
organizations that have strong operational capability that complements
FEMA's programs. FEMA has 10 memorandums of understanding with large
nonprofits: National VOAD, American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, the
United Methodist Committee on Relief, the Adventists Community
Services, Church World Service, Feeding America, Mennonite Disaster
Service, Northern American Mission Board---Southern Baptist
Convention, and Operation Hope USA.
[13] In addition, according to FEMA officials, there is one VAL
assigned as the Disaster Case Management Pilot Program Coordinator/
Liaison for Louisiana.
[14] As of February 2010, Mississippi no longer had any Katrina VALs
in the state.
[15] OFC was established by Executive Order 13,390; 70 Fed. Reg.
67,327 (Nov. 1, 2005). The order was amended by Executive Order
13,463, which extended the office through February 28, 2009; 73 Fed.
Reg. 22,047 (Apr. 18, 2008). On February 20, 2009, the President
signed Executive Order 13,504, which again extended the office through
September 30, 2009; 74 Fed. Reg. 8431 (Feb. 24, 2009). On September
29, 2009, the President extended OFC for a final time, authorizing its
continued operation for another 6 months in Executive Order 13,512; 74
Fed. Reg. 50,911 (Sept. 30, 2009).
[16] See GAO, Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast
Rebuilding: Perspectives and Observations, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-411R] (Washington, D.C.: Apr. 10,
2009).
[17] See [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-07-1084T].
[18] See GAO, Nonprofit Sector: Treatment and Reimbursement of
Indirect Costs Vary Among Grants, and Depend Significantly on Federal,
State, and Local Government Practices, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-10-477] (Washington, D.C.: May 2010).
[19] FEMA awarded a conditional grant for the Mississippi program in
July 2008 but the program did not begin until August 2008. While
Louisiana received an initial grant in October 2008, it received an
adjusted grant award letter from FEMA for the program in February
2009--8 months after the program was intended to begin.
[20] See [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-561].
[21] The Stafford Act through the Post-Katrina Emergency Management
Reform Act of 2006 (Title VI, P.L. 109-295) and the Security and
Accountability for Every Port Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-347) was amended
to include new provisions regarding the federal aid provided to
private nonprofit organizations affected by a major disaster. The
statute authorizes the President to define facilities that provide
"essential services of a governmental nature to the general public."
These provisions, similar to those in FEMA regulations, establish
eligibility to museums, zoos, performing arts facilities, community
arts centers, and other facilities that "provide health and safety
services of a governmental nature." The amendments also added the word
"education" to the listing in the section of the law that defines
critical services.
[22] TANF Emergency Response and Recovery Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-68).
TANF recipients who receive ongoing cash assistance are subject to
certain requirements, such as time limits and work requirements. For
fiscal year (FY) 2005 and FY 2006, the 2005 act waived penalties on
the states for failure to meet state work requirements as well as the
penalty for having more than 20 percent of its caseload on the rolls
for more than 5 years (the TANF time limit). It also gives the
authority to states to provide short-term, nonrecurring benefits for
evacuee families receiving benefits in other states and families in
hurricane damaged states, to meet subsistence needs and not have that
time count for purposes of work requirements or time limits. For
Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi, the Act also made additional
funds available for FY 2006 in the form of loans not to exceed 20
percent of the amount of the State's family assistance grant for FY
2006.
[23] President's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood
Partnerships, A New Era of Partnerships: Report of Recommendations to
the President, March 2010.
[24] See [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-08-369].
[25] GAO, Internal Control Management and Evaluation Tool, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-01-1008G] (Washington, D.C.: Aug.
2001).
[26] See [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-08-369].
[27] The NRF made a key change to the prior 2004 National Response
Plan (NRP) by shifting the primary agency responsibility for
coordinating federal support for mass care from the Red Cross to FEMA.
[28] See [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-06-15] and
[hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-07-1084T].
[29] FEMA, National Disaster Recovery Framework and Long-Term Disaster
Recovery Working Group Briefing, Mar. 22, 2010.
[30] GAO, Disaster Recovery: FEMA's Long-term Assistance Was Helpful
to State and Local Governments but Had Some Limitations, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-10-404] (Washington, D.C.: Mar. 30,
2010).
[31] See 6 U.S.C. § 771.
[End of section]
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