Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco provided the following written statement when presented with NBC News’ findings on James Lee Witt Associates:
FEMA rules and regulations are unnecessarily complicated. It is imperative that any state faced with such a disaster as Louisiana faced with Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hire a knowledgeable firm to help navigate through the federal red tape. James Lee Witt and Associates was hired because of their knowledge and experience, and helped us move an unprecedented $2.2 billion in recovery dollars out to our communities thus far. We have taken great steps in Louisiana to prevent fraud, and regret if there is even an appearance of any action to the contrary. We do not treat allegations of this nature lightly, and expect the contractor to take appropriate action if necessary. We expect James Lee Witt to make sure work charged is work performed.