Katrina aid goes to football condos...and yes that is part of that $110 billion Bush flaunts

The Huffington Post writes has an AP story about Katrina aid in the form of Gulf Opportunity Zone Act, or GO Zone "flowing hundreds of miles inland to investors who are buying up luxury condos near the University of Alabama's football stadium" while much of the Gulf Coast still lies in ruins.

One thing should be noted about this.

The HuffPo post AP article includes that this is all "perfectly legal, and the tax breaks do not take money away from Katrina victims closer to the coast."  However the White House includes $8 billion in Go Zone tax breaks as part of the $110 Billion which it  has repeatedly flogged as proof it has done its part to rebuild the Gulf Coast. From the White House website....

Of this $110 billion, more than $85 billion in total has been obligated, and more than $53 billion has been spent. This funding is being used in efforts including:

SNIP

Gulf Opportunity Zone (GO Zone) Tax Credits Provide An Estimated $8 Billion In Federal Tax Incentives Over Five Years To Spur Private Business Investment And Economic Development. In December 2005, the President signed the GO Zone Act to help create jobs and spur development by providing tax relief for businesses and entrepreneurs in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Since then, the U.S. Department of Treasury has provided $600 million in GO Zone New Markets tax credits to the Gulf Coast region, with an additional $400 million expected to be awarded this fall.

Just keep that in mind next time Bush talks of that $110 Billion which will surely be in about 2 weeks...Yes Bush will be flaunting tax credits that enabled the building of condos for "Crimson Tide alumni or ardent football fans."

Heckuva...well you know the rest.

Bama--condo construction...

NOLA-- boarded up housing project...

(Photo: scout prime)

Comments

[MapleStreet]

Reminds me of flood insurance: the ones who need it can't afford it. The ones that get it are the owners of million dollar homes on the beach which are strictly "summer homes".

If a storm comes, take the money and rebuild. No problem.

Those that can't do without a home for a year, have to sell off.

[Jude]

Damn, that's a slap in the face.

Alabama?

Sheesh.

[jeffrey]

I blame Saban

[Ripley]

That's not accurate, Maple Street. I'm as flabbergasted and angry as anyone about this story but I don't think people understand Flood Insurance.

99.9999% of Flood Insurance is provided and administered by the National Flood Insurance Program, a Federal Gov't program. The entire country is mapped for flood zones, and premiums are based strictly on the home's location and construction style, not its value, because Flood Insurance has across the board limits.

CNN Money:

"Even with an expected rate increase, flood insurance remains relatively cheap. [Ed Pasterick, a spokesman for the mitigation division of FEMA] said the average premium runs about $400 [per year] while the average premium for a high-risk property could cost the policy holder between $650 and $700 [per year]."

When I worked in the brokerage side of the industry (high-net-worth clients), we had many clients who owned multi-million dollar homes in hurricane zones with no coverage at all (naked homes), because they felt the Home policy premiums were too high. I know, it must be nice, right?

This story is about old-fashioned theft and cronyism, which is hardly surprising with the current administration.

[MapleStreet]

Hi Ripley,

You're right that I'm overstating the case. Its just that I've spent a lot of my life on the SE Coast in prime Hurricaine zones watching gated communities with million dollar homes - and the owners pushing to build even closer to the seashore than they were allowed with the idea that if the storms wiped them out, that would be OK as they'd just collect the insurance.

If they, like you mention, don't get the flood insurance because it is too expensive, that is their decision to take the gamble (and willing to gamble 1 million on not getting hit by hurricaine or shore erosion is, in my mind, also a sign of having too much money).

Don't get me wrong - I'm in favor of flood insurance. Just strongly against the abuses that make it a playground for the rich.

Where we overlap is that the "rich" are also the "cronies"

[blogenfreude]

And I'm sure the Dear Leader made sure our tax dollars went to rebuild Trent Lott's house too. Remember, he wants to go sit on the porch.

[Ex-Pat. now Mountain Dweller]

After all of the agony, hurt and abuse over the past two years, is anyone in the New Orleans are ready to admit that voters are not in control of any aspect og Government? I have said for years that there are some scsry parralels to the Fall of the Roman Empire. Now some editorial writers are discussing the same thing. We had a wonderful form of Government, crafted by some very dedicated and intelligent people. Now we have a slovenly interpretation of that form of Government being presided over by crooks and scoundrels. I am amazed that there are still people who think we should dispense justive gently on the likes of Jefferson, Thomas, Vetter and a myriad of others who keep forcing Louisiana down into the severs of graft and corruption.
Somehow the populatin/voters of this country have to begin to pay attention and to NAIL every bad actor that comes along. Short of that, we are encouraging the malfeasance practiced by an alarming number of our politicians. What FEMA was able to get away with in New Orleans and the Gulf South is an example of how little control our politicians have over the operations of Government. Even the GAO recognised some of the incompetent, wasteful and uncaring actions by FEMA, but it has seemed like no one cares. FEMA will reappear, wherever there is a disaster in the future, but they won't be any better. Not only have they not acknowledged their unbelievably inept, uncaring and wasteful actions, they are now trying to hide behind allegations that other levels of government thwarted their efforts and the real bad guys were those folks who lined up for extra ice and meals and other tokens of FEMA's largess and those who collected money by submitting false claims. I would suggest that you could select ONE of the large Corporations/Contractors, who never came near New Orleans but skimmed of millions of dollars intended to help New Orleans. There needs to be a complete and honest Katrina and the following two years, not so we can pick on a single Government agency but so that we can understand how bad things have gotten and how important necessary reforms and changes have becom. WAKE UP AMERICA!!!