FEMA unsure of major disaster costs

Billions of tax dollars are spent helping victims of major disasters, but a government watchdog says Federal Emergency Management Agency officials don’t track spending and can’t say whether their most expensive efforts accomplish their purposes.

“We estimate that, between 1994 and 2013, FEMA obligated and spent more than $4 billion in administrative costs and more than $1 billion in salaries for the seven Long Term Recovery Offices,” said the Department of Homeland Security Inspector in a report made public Nov. 14, 2014.