Ways and Means Subcommittee Hearing on Charities' Response to Hurricane Katrina

The House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee held a hearing on December 13, 2005 to review the response by charities to Hurricane Katrina. While the efforts of charities and volunteers were praised, the shortcomings were also highlighted as well as lessons for the future. Witnesses included Representative Jim McCrery (R-LA) and representatives from the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army of America, and the Baton Rouge Area Foundation. Two representatives from the disabled community; the Homeland Security Director for Bossier City, Louisiana; and Daniel Borochoff of the American Institute of Philanthropy also testified on a second panel.

In his opening statement, Chairman Jim Ramstad (R-MN) emphasized that he wanted to focus the hearing on three main concerns:

1) The need for better coordination among charities, large and small, during massive disasters. This problem was identified after the September 11th attacks, but much work remains to be done.
2) Charities must not forget or neglect communities and individuals that are hard to reach, including minority, disabled and low-income communities, during disasters.
3) Steps must be taken to ensure that charitable dollars are not lost to fraud. If Americans feel that their donations are not being used wisely, they may not be so generous in the future.

Congressman Jim McCrery (R-LA) identified shortcomings he saw in the sheltering capacity of the Red Cross and the way the national office coordinated local efforts. He noted that the American Red Cross holds a Congressional charter as the primary agency responsible for mass care after a disaster and questioned whether such a large responsibility should be in the hands of one organization. McCrery also said that because of its unique relationship with the federal government, the Red Cross has an advantage in fundraising over other charities and questioned whether such a large percentage of donations raised for a disaster should go to one charity.

Joseph Becker, Senior Vice President for Preparedness and Response at the American Red Cross, spoke of the magnitude of the level of human need created by Hurricane Katrina – more than 20 times larger than anything the Red Cross had faced before. The geographic area impacted was equivalent to the size of Great Britain. Becker also acknowledged that lessons are being learned about how to improve the organization’s response to future disasters. In particular, work needs to be done regarding coordination and partnerships, and outreach to minority and disabled communities.

The fact that the Salvation Army is not included as a primary agency in the National Response Plan is something that hampers their efforts according to Major Todd Hawks. In his testimony, Hawks urged Congress to include explicit mention of the Salvation Army in the national plan in order to help clarify their role. Hawks also urged standardized training for delivering disaster services and he urged Congress to “make it as easy as possible for donors to contribute to charitable organizations.”

Cynthia Fagnoni of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) discussed lessons learned and actions taken after GAO’s review of charitable coordination following the attacks of September 11, including the formation of the Coordinated Assistance Network (CAN), a partnership of FEMA and seven disaster response charities. CAN’s data sharing network is still in the pilot phase, but it is hoped that it will ease collaboration and case management in the future. Fagnoni also described the U.S. National Response Plan which provides a comprehensive framework for responding to domestic events such as natural disasters and terrorist attacks. The American Red Cross and the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD), an umbrella group or 40 charities, are the only nongovernmental groups included in the plan. The American Red Cross serves as a primary agency under the plan, responsible for coordinating federal mass care. National VOAD is responsible for sharing information with its member organizations about the severity of the disaster, identified needs and actions taken to address those needs. GAO is continuing to study the federal and charitable response to the Gulf Coast hurricanes and will be issuing a further report.

Initial GAO report (PDF)
Testimony posted on the Ways and Means Committee website

Last Updated: December 21, 2005

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