Tom Coburn: “this is the first of many amendments I am going to be offering the rest of the year to make a downpayment for our…”

“this is the first of many amendments I am going to be offering the rest of the year to make a downpayment for our grandchildren to pay for Hurricane Katrina. I start small, but there are many in Washington who say we cannot do it, that there is not the waste, fraud, and abuse, there are not significant dollars that are not spent wisely and prioritized. This is one that I am not sure will pass, but it certainly cannot not be recognized by anybody who looks at the books of the rental assistance program that this is an appropriate amendment. The appropriation for this program in 2005 was $587,264,000. The budget estimate for 2006 was $650 million, the House allowance was $650 million, and the committee recommendation is $653 million. According to the committee, this program and the objective of the program is to reduce rents paid by low-income families living in rural housing service financed with rental projects and farm labor housing projects. That is a meritorious goal. It is something we ought to be doing, and I fully support doing that. However, the payments from the fund are made to the project owner for the difference between the tenant's payment and the approved rental rate established for the unit. Why would I offer an amendment to trim that back? It is because the rental assistance program has been gaming us, according to the Government Accountability Office. Let me explain how.…”