[FoCHAT] CHAT News: CHAT & ICF Hsing. Advisor on COX 10; Write to HUD; ICF$; Discouraging HMGP elevn.

Sun Dec 14 19:30:42 CST 2008

Dear Friends of CHAT,

1. Our Dec. 10 CHAT meeting is being televised by COX10
            We thank George Blow and COX10 for their dedication to getting the facts about Road Home to applicants!
The 2-hour CHAT meeting on Dec. 10, 2008 about Road Home Contradictions has been/will be shown on:

Tues., Dec. 16, 4 PM; Wed., Dec. 17, noon; Thurs., Dec. 18, 8 AM.
Featured at this filmed CHAT meeting is a former ICF and Quadel housing advisor
            His descriptions match those of numerous applicants
about Kafka-esque treatment sometimes even when the housing advisors were as helpful as they were allowed to be.
His independent description during the filmed meeting also matches documents that we obtained by Public Records Request about the hidden 35% variation rule and the Peer Review Process (that few outside Road Home had heard of). 
His description of a totally wrong house entry by the Housing Evaluation team, mirrors complaints that we get from applicants of the wrong house being evaluated when they finally got a copy of their records. 
                                For example, this weekend on our online survey 
                                http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=hdEchbm8Vl_2bWFDmxi7E_2f7w_3d_3d
a respondent told us that her mother’s house was evaluated instead of hers, as she found out by requesting a copy of her file
How to request a full copy of your file (ask for the JIRA record too): http://road2la.org/Docs/policies/req_copy_file_071708.pdf 

2.  The State Inspector General’s Report approving the additional $156 million for ICF International, the Road Home contractor  

Louisiana State Inspector General’s 12/10/08 Report  http://doa.louisiana.gov/OIG/pdf%20reports/2008/1080019.pdf

Note that the report used ICF’s suspect numbers for large increases in applicants without any checking of the facts.

Note that almost the only people interviewed for this report were involved in the increased money to ICF.

Among the interviewees were “ICF lobbyists.” 

Now, how does ICF International get the money for these lobbyists?

Now, how does ICF get more federal contracts in the last month, including for Head Start?

Monday, October 27, 2008 (from the Wash. Post)
ICF of Fairfax won a $40 million contract from the Department of Health and Human Services to support the Head Start program. 

Monday, December 1, 2008; Page D04 
ICF of Fairfax won a $3.9 million contract from the Health and Human Services Department to provide services such as research and data coordinating. 

Is HUD unaware of the great problems with ICF’s work on the Road Home?

Did DHHS not do any independent checking of ICF?

      See about ICF overbilling in the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s report http://www.lla.state.la.us/ on Dec. 3, 2008 to be posted at chatushome.com 

Please write a few sentences (or more) to HUD if all this and what is related below bothers you:

Barbara_Dorf at hud.gov;  Sheila_Greenwood at hud.gov; David_Hazelton at hud.gov

More questions about ICF:

http://blog.nola.com/editorials/2008/12/icf_billings_warrant_review_1.html

ICF billings warrant review 
by The Times-Picayune editorial staff 
Saturday December 13, 2008, 3:58 AM
“Apparently the Road Home program is not all contractor ICF International does sloppily. The firm also has been plagued by problems and insufficient documentation in some of its billings to the state, prompting a recent state audit questioning millions of dollars in expenses submitted by the firm…”

http://blog.nola.com/editorials/2008/12/missing_the_point_on_icf.html

“Missing the point on ICF
Few Louisianians doubt they got the short end of the stick when former Gov. Kathleen Blanco granted the Road Home contractor a $156 million pay raise just weeks before leaving office. 
ICF International's incompetence was well-established by then, and public anger over its Road Home's failures had forced then-Gov. Blanco to forgo a re-election bid. She surely knew ICF's pay raise would cause an uproar, which explains why her team executed it in a way that left the public and many legislators in the dark for months. 
So Louisianians are scratching their heads now that a report by state Inspector General Stephen Street has concluded that the Blanco administration did not try to conceal ICF's raise. Even more startling, the report deemed the 25 percent pay raise justified mostly because of higher-than-expected estimates on the number of grants to be paid -- even though that was never the parameter for payment in ICF's initial contract…”

ICF has used the excuse of more applicants than expected to justify the increase in its contract ceiling from $756 million to $912 million.
http://www.nola.com/timespic/stories/index.ssf?/base/library-144/1206076895190910.xml&coll=1
Road Home set to revise appeals; Unhappy applicants to get new options By Bill Barrow; Friday, March 21, 2008
The December amendment bases the higher budget cap on the argument that ICF will pay out far more Road Home grants than originally expected. The document says the number increased from 100,000 to about 160,000. 

Yet the program was launched expecting to pay more than 114,000 grants, and estimates for total grants have now dropped to as low as 128,000. 

Completed applications as of Dec. 1, 2008 Pipeline Report:
       Closed:
       No funding/Zero Award:
       Declined awards:

136,872
120,155
14,219
2,498

http://www.neworleanscitybusiness.com/uptotheminute.cfm?recid=17086&userID=0&referer=dailyUpdate
May 1, 2008 09:06 AM CST; Road Home grants to be fewer than expected; by The AP
  BATON ROUGE - The Road Home hurricane recovery program will hand out about 25,000 fewer grants than was estimated months ago. 
That was the word from state recovery officials to lawmakers today. 

Mike Taylor, with the state Office of Community Development, said the state's latest estimates are that about 125,000 to 130,000 applicants to The Road Home program will receive grants. That's down from previous estimates of 155,000. 

http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/5_billion_in_federal_hurricane.html 
$5 billion in federal hurricane recovery aid still unspent in Louisiana :  AP  Nov. 18, 2008
Tuesday November 18, 2008, 3:51 PM 
BATON ROUGE -- More than one-third of the $13.4 billion in federal block grant aid given to Louisiana after hurricanes Katrina and Rita remains unspent, according to information provided Tuesday to the state's hurricane recovery panel. 
… However, the Road Home isn't expected to spend all the money allocated to it because fewer people received aid than were initially projected. 

The Times-Picayune article about the increase  http://www.nola. com/news/ index.ssf/ 2008/12/state_ inspector_ general_to_ rel.html and an op-ed article about the increase  http://www.nola.com/timespic/stories/index.ssf?/base/News/122906289443450.xml&coll=1

These two articles tell the facts that need to be told with one addition we offer to the Op-Ed article.

 Ex-Gov. Blanco may have mostly been motivated to give the hidden (yes, hidden from the public)  increase to ICF because of the letter from Frank Abramcheck, ICF Program Executive, to Suzy Elkins, former Director of OCD, that was included in the report. The Nov. 16, 2007 letter refers to firing employees within 60 days if the increase was not granted. 

You can go to our website http://chatushome.com and see on the first page the links to the ICF contract and five of its amendments as well as to the State Inspector General’s report. 

Nowhere in these contracts is the number of applicants expected in the RH mentioned as a determinant of the size of the contract.

Moreover, ICF has shown repeated reluctance, even at an LRA Housing Task Force meeting, to eliminate duplicate applications (like mine because we applied by mail and were told later to reapply by email) by simple computer methods.

So, ICF has inflated the numbers of real applicants.

ICF has bungled so many aspects of the RH, which in turn, necessitated additional rule changes and increased the hours that it got paid for.

ICF has done plenty of make-work tasks, for which it was billed without helping applicants get their grant mistakes corrected or, even, get their grants at all.

ICF has shown extreme reluctance to correct very large numbers of flagrant grant short-changing mistakes.

Do you think that ICF has filled these aspects of its contract?

Statement of Work

2(a)7. Provide applicants with technical assistance from qualified Rebuilding
Advisors, who will advise owners on the following:

2(a)7.1. The implications of choosing the various options under the
program.

2(a)7.2. How to understand and manage financial matters such as insurance
payments, FEMA payments, outstanding secured loans, liens, etc.

2(a)7.3. If the repair, replace or rebuild/relocate options are selected, an
initial advisory session about the tasks involved for the owner will be
conducted addressing issues such as: how to avoid being defrauded,
professional design and survey services that may be required, how to
identifL services providers and building contractors through the Rebuilding
Professional Registry, and how to manage engagements with those service
providers and contractors.

2(a)7.5. If a client is seeking to obtain a new mortgage loan, or to
refinance, in order to carry out a rebuilding plan, Rebuilding Advisors will
obtain credit reports (with the client's permission) and assist clients in
determining their eligibility and likely amount of the loan by using
standard automated pre-qualifying software packages used in connection
with first-time homebuyer programs around the country.

2(a)7.6. In accordance with protocols and time limits that are part of the
operational plan, Rebuilding Advisors will offer continuing assistance to
qualified homeowners as they continue through the repair, rebuilding and
relocation options. It is assumed that Rebuilding Advisors will spend an
average of 2 hours per client advising an applicant whose qualifications
and property ownership have not been determined, and an average of 20more hours with an applicant who has been determined to be eligible for
financial assistance from the program. It is the responsibility of the
Contractor to develop management systems that limit the time that
Rebuilding Advisors spend in the aggregate providing services to program
clients.

2(a)7.7. If a client is required to undertake mitigation methods during the
course of the repair of their home, the Rebuilding Advisor with the
assistance of the Mitigation Advisor will provide assistance and guidance
to the client on what are the best mitigation techniques and how to acquire
the necessary services to conduct the appropriate mitigation.

2(a)8. If the "buyouD'relocate" or "sell" options are chosen by an applicant, the
case will be assigned to a Property Disposition Specialist, who will advise the
owner on the steps involved in selling the property, demolishing any existing
structures as necessary, receiving compensation from the Srate, and negotiating
with secured lenders and other lien holders to clear liens on the property.
Property Disposition Specialists are expected to spend an average of 2 hours
advising clients and as much additional time as necessary to conclude the
transfer of the property to the State or its designee.

2(a)9. Provide legal services as necessary to determine the amount of
compensation to be provided to the homeowner in accordance with the
processes and systems described above. Provide legal opinions as needed
relative to eligibility and funding decisions or compensations made to
homeowners, and if needed, to attest that the processes utilized were in
conformance with state and federal law,

2(a)10. Develop and manage internal quality control processes to ensure
consistency among a large number of Rebuilding Advisors.

2(a)14. Develop an "ombudsman" type program that will receive and deal with any complaints homeowners may have regarding the program implementation.

3. HMGP Elevation Grants: New Restrictive Rules

One of the currently listed requirements in an OCD slide presentation for HMGP elevation grants is that the total square footage of the new structure cannot be greater than 10% more than that of the original structure’s footprint. However, you may be able to apply for a waiver (as if you haven’t waited long enough for this promised money to build safer, stronger and smarter!).

Homeowners who did not begin elevating by March 16, 2008 have to wait for a visit from an OCD mitigation analyst before elevating to receive their FEMA HMGP certification.

This surely sounds like a way to discourage yet more applicants from applying for HMGP money so as to save that HMGP money for other purposes than the promised help to still suffering Hurricane/Flood Katrina and Rita victims.

4. To access past 2008 CHAT newsletters

 go to http://www.louisianarebuilds.info/chatupdates

CHAT Newsletters

December 4, 2008: Fraud from contractors; new Road Home Rules 
November 22, 2008: Too Many or Too Few Applicants? 
October 28, 2008: CHAT Mtgs; Info For Elevation Grants & Final File Audits 
October 25, 2008: After Mar. 15, 2008? HMGP Elevation Funds? 
October 20, 2008: Courts & Law; T-P & BR Newspapers; PolicyLink; GNOFHAC 
October 14, 2008: Free Renovation Forum, Road Home & Appeals & Elevation Grants 
October 11, 2008: Applicant Corrections?, Paybacks, Appeals, Taxes 
October 8, 2008: Cox 10, short directory of RH info 
October 7, 2008: Appeal Rules 
September 19, 2008: Contact Gov/Report Card on TV/SBA/H 
August 24, 2008: Thank You As We Near The Hurricane Anniversary 
August 21, 2008: Even in the military; appeals & deadline templates 
August 15, 2008: Important: help get the Road Home reform law taken seriously by LRA in 5 min of your time! 
August 9, 2008: LRA's deadline today; unfair Sept. 5 deadline for applicants, RH land 
August 8, 2008: Gov. Jindal & Important New Survey; PALs; Sold-Home; PSV; Sept. 5 Deadlines 
July 26, 2008: What Did HUD Really Say?; Taxes; Rebuilding Info; Food 
July 19, 2008: New Policy-Fair Access to Applicants' Records; Square Footage 
July 18, 2008: What Are Some Of The Things CHAT Is Involved In Now? 
July 11, 2008: Thousands wait on hold as ICF bumbles along 
July 1, 2008: What You Can Do; Shrinking Elev. Grants; CHAT Mtg. 7/2 
June 14, 2008: Appeals, New Initiatives, Elevation Comments, A Word To Our Sponsors 
June 8, 2008: Elevation Grant Forms and Comments on Road Home Property Deadlines and More 
June 2, 2008: SB 740 derailed without a vote but with questionable LRA-OCD input 
April 27, 2008: Meetings on Cox 10 
April 21, 2008: payback to RH; Road Home help 
April 20, 2008: COX10, Elevation, LRA Board Meeting, Misery Index 
April 11, 2008: Road Home Audits, Dispute Resolutions, Elevation Letters, Contractor information 
April 5, 2008: Liens, Road Home Appeals, more... 
April 1, 2008: Avoiding Contractor Fraud, COX10, and NPR 
March 31, 2008: Hiring a Collection Company To Make Applicants Repay Road Home Money, The Bid Solicitation 
March 23, 2008: Summary Appeals & Elevation 
March 19, 2008: Elevation info, Help for dealing with contractors, Tax info, Notes from the Housing Task Force Mtg. 
March 17, 2008: Inspector General for ICF but Applicants Need Extended Appeals and Investigation For Fair Grants 
March 13, 2008: Information that may be helpful in understanding elevation allowances from Road Home 
March 11, 2008: 2 particularly important Road Home meeting announcements 
March 9, 2008: "I went home every night from First American and I prayed for every one of you" 
March 4, 2008: Government-Sponsored Meetings About the Road Home 
February 18, 2008: Having Trouble With Your Case Manager or with Your CAD? Top RH Official Says Tell Him 
February 17, 2008: Elevation Grant Update 
February 16, 2008: Some Questions and Numbers 
Thanks again to LouisianaREBUILDS.info!

If you have ongoing RH problems, please take or retake our survey at http://chatushome.com

Best wishes,

Melanie Ehrlich
Co-Chairman, Citizens’ Road Home Action Team (CHAT)
http://chatushome.com

Online CHAT survey for those who still have problems with Road Home (you can take it again if your problem is not solved months after you taking the survey before)

                http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=hdEchbm8Vl_2bWFDmxi7E_2f7w_3d_3d
 (link is also at the bottom of the first page of our website chatushome.com
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