New York Times Op EdThe Bush administration has made a commitment to rebuilding southern Louisiana. Congress must make sure this opportunity is not lost.
On Wednesday, President Bush's Katrina czar, Donald Powell, called for $4.2 billion more to help Louisiana residents save severely damaged homes and, in some cases, rebuild in safer areas. Congress needs to approve this request quickly for New Orleans and the surrounding parishes to have a fighting chance at anything but a patchwork recovery.
Half a year was too long to wait. Speculators have already begun to settle like vultures around the city, offering victims pennies on the dollar for their properties. The desperate often jump at any cash offer, but a clear commitment to rebuilding and a promise of support backed by money will help poor homeowners withstand the plunderers.
There is a misconception that giving money to the city and the state will lead to unwise rebuilding in parts of the city that are less safe. In fact, the opposite is true. Right now, homeowners who are tied to wrecked homes by their mortgages may have no choice but to attempt to rebuild on the same spots or to declare bankruptcy. This money will allow the homeowners to raise and strengthen some houses and will help those in the most dangerous places find safer places to live.
Combined with the earlier $6.2 billion in community development block grants, the money asked for in the current request would give Louisiana enough to begin dealing with 100,000 severely damaged and 67,000 less-damaged homes. State recovery officials say it would also be used to rebuild rental properties for the poorest residents.
As important, the public money will probably draw much more private money back, in a multiplier effect that has thus far been sorely missed. Once displaced residents of southern Louisiana parishes understand that the commitment is there, those with less-damaged homes can return to reclaim their lives with private insurance checks in hand.
This does not mean that the city's and the region's problems have been solved. Mr. Powell is no spendthrift. Grants from the funds will be capped at $150,000, minus any payouts from the Federal Emergency Management Agency or private insurance companies. That will lead to some tough choices for middle-income families with damages above the limit.
And there are still significant concerns about how to save commercial properties, like the mom-and-pop stores vital to the region's return, not to mention the serious infrastructure needs. It is unclear what mechanism local officials will use for buying out homeowners; the administration has rejected a proposal by Representative Richard Baker of Louisiana to create a federal nonprofit group for that purpose.
Most of all, the aid is far from a done deal. Congress has to pass the White House request as part of a larger package of added hurricane relief. That's hardly a given. Congress has yet to put back some of the money it took out of the president's 2005 request for levee protection. But by approving this modest but fair package, Washington could give Louisianans something to celebrate this Mardi Gras.
