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Emergency Planning Officials had been Indicted in Louisiana

At The American Thinker:

The Los Angeles Times breaks the story today that several “senior officials” in Louisiana’s emergency planning agencies were under indictment for waste and fraud concerning expenditure of federal funds for disaster mitigation before Katrina hit. Federal auditors are still trying to account for nearly $60 million that was sent to the state from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), dating back to 1998. In March, FEMA also demanded that Louisiana repay $30.4 million to the federal government. Most of these funds were sent to the state under the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, which was to be used to retrofit property and improve flood control facilities.

The American Thinker's link is to a LA Times website that requires a password, but I found the story by going to Google News.
To be clear, the indictment occurred before Hurricane Katrina. But this story helps to explain how the situation in New Orleans could have gone so poorly. Oh, by the way... the office that is the target of this investigation is the same one that will be responsible for administering a large portion of the federal aid anticipated for victims of Katrina.

Much of the FEMA money that was unaccounted for was sent to Louisiana under the Hazard Mitigation Grant program, intended to help states retrofit property and improve flood control facilities, for example. The $30.4 million FEMA is demanding back was money paid into that program and others, including a program to buy out flood-prone homeowners. As much as $30 million in additional unaccounted for spending also is under review in audits that have not yet been released, according to a FEMA official.