Mississippi is paying their homeowners $150,000. I guess it's okay because Hailey Barbour is a big pubbie. Where's the outrage over the feds bailing out the homeowners in MS who were flooded out without flood insurance? It is the same issue. It just happens to be that a major US city was destroyed instead of the smaller communities that usually get wiped out during hurricane season.
From the 2000 U.S. Census, the median value of homes in New Orleans is $87,300.00.
Specified owner-occupied units 74,407 100.0%
VALUE
Less than $50,000 9,204 12.4%
$50,000 to $99,999 35,535 47.8%
$100,000 to $149,999 12,778 17.2%
$150,000 to $199,999 6,775 9.1%
$200,000 to $299,999 5,246 7.1%
$300,000 to $499,999 3,170 4.3%
$500,000 to $999,999 1,466 2.0%
$1,000,000 or more 233 0.3%
Median (dollars) 87,300
In 2000, according to the Census Bureau, 60.2% of all homes in New Orleans had a value of less that $100,000.00. How many of the 20,000 homes fall into this category, I have no idea.
I have no problem helping my fellow citizens, I am concerned about how H.R. Bill 4100 is going to determing purchase price, see my post 135.
Example of my concern. If the Louisiana Recovery Corporation purchases a home for $75,000.00 (market value before Katrina), then levels the home, prepares the land...sewers, water, electricity for another say $15,000.00 totalling $90,000.00 for now what is just land. The Louisiana Recovery Corporation sells the property to a developer for $25,000.00 for a net loss of ($65,000.00). Who is going to pay this for this loss. Is this how it really is going to work.
I'm not against New Orleans residents getting help, I just what to know what H.R. 4100 is going to cost all of us before all is said and done. The emphasis of this thread was Bush was stalling the bill. After looking into the details of the Bill (see my previous posts on this thread), I have some reservations about this plan. Thats my opinion.
One last thing, I went to the Congressional Budget Office's website and searched for a scoring of HR 4100. There was no cost estimate for H.R. 4100. It wasn't even mentioned anywhere on the site. CBO scores any bill a congressman requests and there are plenty on file under the 109th Congress. But not H.R. 4100. I found that interesting. Thats why I tried to do some analysis on my own. Normally, CBO does it.