forgotston.com

Friday, there was a story by the AP about Governor Blanco’s Road Home Program and its goal for grant closings. The story begs the question of what exactly is the goal?

According to the story:

[Governor Blanco's] Louisiana’s Road Home program hit a milestone Friday, having handed out more than 1,000 grants to homeowners but that’s less than halfway to its February goal, with only days left until the month end.

The latest figures released Friday showed 1,005 homeowners of the more 109,000 applicants have received grants

Interpreting the goal

As I read the above, the TOTAL number of grant closings since the inception of the program is 1,0005. The “goal,” as reported above, is 2,300 grant closings IN FEBRUARY.

Thus saying that ICF is halfway to its mark of 2,300 closings indicates that ICF may be using all of the prior closings to arrive at the goal of “2,300 grants in February.”

Perhaps the AP made a mistake in its characterization that ICF is “halfway” to its goal. If the AP used only the closings in February, ICF would not even be a quarter of the way to its goal.

Perhaps we will see ICF, as it has in the past when it could not reach its goal, simply, after-the-fact, lower the goal.

Questions to be answered soon

In any case, we should know something for certain on Thursday.

Will ICF meet its previously announced goal of 2,300 grants IN THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY?

Will ICF redefine “in the month of February”?

Will Governor Blanco do anything if ICF fails to meet whatever is the goal?

What’s needed?

If we are ever going to hold ICF’s feet to the fire, first we need to set firm, definable, goals for getting grants into the hands of the victims of the disasters . The lack of such goals appear to be the primary weakness in the contract the governor signed with ICF.

C.B.

Uncategorized CB 8:00 am

There has been a lot talk about legislation that Senate President Senator Dr. Don “Doc” Hines, MD, has proposed.

Hines wants to reduce the power of State Treasurer John Kennedy over the State Bond Commission.

Until I heard Hines’s explanation on the radio Wednesday via TheDeadPelican.com, I thought the legislation was introduced by an egomaniacal politician on a vendetta.

Doc is merely trying to make the Bond Commission more “user-friendly.” “Doc” is looking after the “mom and pop” bond issuers, i.e. Commish of Agriculture Bob Odom, who appear before the commission for authorization to sell their bonds.

Apparently, Kennedy has been forcing the issuers to show that they can repay the bonds. That is most unneighborly.

If these little bond issuers are going to be forced to show that they can repay the debt they just as well go to a bank.

Thanks “Doc” for looking out for us mullets.

C.B.

Uncategorized CB 8:00 am

Just when one thinks that Governor Blanco’s Road Home Program can’t get any more screwed up and wasteful we see a story in Wednesday’s Daily Monopoly about using out-of-state companies hiring in-state appraisers to assist with the program.

Here’s how I understand how the appraisers will be hired.

ICF, a Virginia company, hired a California company to contract with a Florida company to approach LA appraisers about doing the appraisal work. The CA company will be paid $275 per appraisal done by LA appraisers for which the LA appraisers will be paid a fee of $150.

It seems that ICF could have simply contacted the LA Board of Appraisers and saved the $275 per appraisal which could mean the $27.5 Million to the CA company could be used to give more or larger grants to homeowners.

I would have been happy to give ICF the contact info for the LA Board of Appraisers in Baton Rouge. Go here. It’s a state agency. Ask for a list; no charge.

What’s wrong with this picture?

C.B.

Uncategorized CB 8:00 am