Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to support H.R. 3509--the Assessing Progress in Haiti Act. I would like to commend my colleague, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, for introducing this legislation and I am happy to be an original cosponsor of this important bill aimed to provide greater oversight of U.S. taxpayer funding for reconstruction efforts in Haiti. This bill calls for a State Department review of the U.S. funded recovery and development efforts in Haiti, which began over three years ago in the wake of the deadly 2010 earthquake. In June of 2012, then-Ranking Member Berman and I requested that the GAO investigate the progress of reconstruction efforts in Haiti. This report was important to ensure that American dollars are going to the Haitian people who are truly in need and not resulting in fraud, waste and abuse. This year, GAO issued the report and I was disappointed to learn that three years after the earthquake, emergency relief efforts were still woefully disorganized, with much of the funds: not reaching the Haitian people; USAID is suffering to get some programs off the ground; and the lack of coordination between U.S. federal agencies is inadequate. As of March 2013, USAID had obligated only 45 percent and disbursed 31 percent of funding for Haiti from the Supplemental Appropriations Act from 2010. Meanwhile, delays continue to mount and goals are being scaled back. For example, USAID originally planned to build 15,000 new homes.…”