Following are experts who can discuss President Bush's recovery plan for the Gulf Coast. The federal government plans to pay for most of the costs to fix damage during and after the storm. Bush proposed the creation of a Gulf Opportunity Zone, which 'should provide immediate incentives for job-creating investment, tax relief for small businesses, incentives to companies that create jobs, and loans and loan guarantees for small businesses.' Bush also proposed federally funded worker recovery accounts of up to $5,000 for evacuees to spend on job training, classes or child care during the hunt for employment.
ROUND-UP: GULF COAST RECONSTRUCTION
**1. CHRIS EDWARDS, director of tax policy studies at CATO INSTITUTE: “President Bush is jumping the gun with promises of big federal spending to rebuild damaged cities 'even better' than before. Many evacuees may not want to move back to their former homes because this is apparently a dangerous place to live. Moving back into New Orleans, with its inadequate levees, high crime, corruption and poor economy would seem like a bad decision for many. Rebuilding should be a state and local responsibility, because these governments can better measure the costs and benefits of repairing each type of infrastructure. They should wait and see what is actually needed in their less-populated cities of the future.�
**2. DAVID BOAZ, executive vice president of CATO INSTITUTE: "President Bush's sense of compassion is admirable, but his solutions reflect a misunderstanding of economics and of the American Constitution. In our federalist system, rebuilding a city is primarily a local responsibility. The federal government has helped in the past, but it has never taken primary responsibility for such local concerns. If the $200 billion figure turns out to be correct, we should note that it is twice what the U.S. government spent on the Marshall Plan to rebuild all of Western Europe after World War II. The president's proposal reflects too much money being spent with too little thought. Congress must not kowtow to the president; it must do the responsible thing and take time to consider how best to respond to a local natural disaster."
**3. PHILIP DADDONA, senior managing director of FTI CONSULTING: "Now that President Bush has launched the federal government’s reconstruction efforts in the Gulf Coast region, several key questions have emerged, not the least of which is how to prevent instances of waste, fraud and abuse from tainting and distracting from the recovery efforts." Based on his experience at Ground Zero at Sept. 11, Daddona can talk about these issues, as well as the infrastructure priorities of the reconstruction efforts. From an operations perspective, he can also review and analyze the current plan and offer additional suggestions based on his experience.
**4. CRAIG S. KING, attorney with Washington, D.C.-based firm ARENT FOX, has more than two decades of experience in government contracting, and is a valuable source for those covering the government's role in Katrina reconstruction efforts. His specialties include oversight/auditing, two key areas given the increasing allegations of fraud: "With $50 billion at stake, the potential for abuse is great; companies are already being investigated for 'back-door' wrangling and no-bid contracts." In addition to fraud, King is an expert on federal market competition; contract negotiations; antitrust reviews; privatization and outsourcing of government functions and ethics/compliance.
**5. ROBERT MURRAY, vice president of economic affairs at MCGRAW-HILL CONSTRUCTION RESEARCH & ANALYTICS: "The U.S. economy appears capable of absorbing the shock from Katrina without slipping into recession. Continued employment growth will help the market fundamentals for such income property types as offices, hotels and multi-family housing over the long-term. The continuation of low mortgage rates supports single-family housing this year, and total construction starts for the U.S. are still expected to rise 6 percent to 7 percent in 2005, even with the loss of new construction start activity in the Gulf region. The U.S. economy will see growth dampened by 0.5 percent to 1 percent during the latter half of 2005 -- discernible, but not enough to tip the economy into recession."
**6. STEPHEN SLIVINSKI, director of budget services at CATO INSTITUTE: "Americans and businesses have together donated around $750 million to the hurricane relief effort so far. For those donating, the sacrifice might be small, but it is a sacrifice nonetheless. Contrast that with the White House and Congress’ response. They’ve rushed to spend $63 billion of taxpayer money without sacrificing a single dollar devoted to their pet projects. In a federal budget of $2.5 trillion, there are plenty of wasted dollars and unnecessary pork projects to offset the spending on Katrina relief efforts. Charity requires sacrifice, even from big-spending politicians using other people's money for charitable purposes."
**7. PAM BAKER, Gulf fisheries biologist for ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE: "Hurricane Katrina has devastated the Gulf's fisheries and fishing economy, especially the shrimp industry, which was already depleted. Following the destruction of Hurricane Katrina, Environmental Defense will work with our partners, fishermen and government officials to find ways to improve the long- term economic and ecological outcomes in the Gulf’s struggling fisheries, as the government puts together a disaster assistance package. This work is already happening in the Gulf. Environmental Defense is working closely with fishermen, government officials and other partners to design fishing quota systems for red snapper, reef fish, shrimp and other key fisheries. A disaster assistance package should build upon this work. Katrina disaster assistance should be structured to help fishermen and their communities in the short- term, and give them a much better long-term opportunity for safe, viable and sustainable fisheries."
**8. VALSIN A. MARMILLION, spokesperson for AMERICA'S WETLAND: CAMPAIGN TO SAVE COASTAL LOUISIANA, can address what Hurricane Rita’s approach means to Louisiana’s coastal wetlands and how any recovery plan must marry flood protection with wetland restoration to protect New Orleans and coastal Louisiana from future hurricanes: "Louisiana's coastal wetlands, which serve as the state's first line of defense against hurricanes and the storm surge they produce, need urgent restoration. There are almost open water conditions around New Orleans now. Because of wetland loss some areas of Louisiana are no longer protected at all.�
**9. TYREE COLLIER, tax shareholder at JENKENS & GILCHRIST, has helped companies provide disaster relief, both through direct efforts and by helping them establish tax-exempt foundations to address hardships. He advised a large for-profit hospital system wanting to provide Katrina relief for employees, and helped two large businesses set up programs following Sept. 11: "There is a structured process for setting up foundations to address limited hardships, but for companies wanting to provide relief for major disasters, like Katrina, they do not have to go through the same process because of more lenient rules for events significant enough to receive government support."
**10. BASIL IMBURGIA, senior managing director of FTI CONSULTING: "Companies will be working with their insurance carriers in the next few weeks to try and assess the damage along the Gulf Coast. Frequently, the insurance companies and the damaged companies themselves hire firms with expertise in forensics, construction, data management and storage, insurance adjusting and computers to set the level of damage." FTI will help insurance carriers accurately estimate damages for payouts and work with companies that have suffered damages to double-check the assessments of the insurers. FTI brings expertise from their role in Sept. 11 cleanup in New York to the Gulf Coast.
**11. DAVID ROSNER, U.S. Marine Corps (reserve) intelligence officer, former combat service support officer and veteran of Hurricane Iniki relief operations, the first Gulf War and Operation Iraqi Freedom: "The criticism of the Katrina recovery effort is ill-informed, due to a lack of understanding of the rules and regulations allowing for military assistance. There is also a misconception by the public regarding the logistical capabilities of civilian and military agencies." Rosner has logistics and military intelligence support experience at the tactical and operational level.
**12. STEVEN ROTHBERG, president and founder of COLLEGERECRUITER.COM: "I just returned from four days in southern Mississippi doing volunteer disaster response work for Nechama: Jewish Response to Disaster. I assessed the damage to homes and small businesses in Hattiesburg and Ocean Springs. The devastation I saw in the latter was something I hope I never have to witness again. Two entire blocks along the entire coast are gone, just gone. People picking through the rubble of their former homes in the hope of finding something, anything of sentimental value."
**13. BRIAN GREENBERG, CPA, financial analyst and college planner: "Break out your disco shoes; we're going back to the '70s. Bush's plans to rebuild New Orleans -- guns, butter and bread -- will bring about '70s style inflation."
**14. SUSAN WILEY HARDWICK, professor of geography at the UNIVERSITY OF OREGON and author of "Mythic Galveston," which includes a lot on the city's reconstruction following the 1900 hurricane: "Indeed, viewed from a development perspective, Galveston might be seen as the ultimate triumph of technology over nature: a remarkable success story of complete structural migration of the environment, a place where the efficacy of engineering genius truly saved the day." Hardwick’s research underscores the exhibit "Through Galveston's Gate,� which opens in early 2008 at the Texas State Historical Museum.
**15. JOHN SAVAGEAU, senior vice president of operations at CRG WEST in Los Angeles, can talk about BellSouth's estimate that it will cost between $400 and $600 million to repair the more than 1.1 million telephone and Internet lines damaged by Hurricane Katrina, as well as the logical need to replace their old copper system with either wireless or other modern facilities. Savageau, who has extensive telecom disaster recovery experience throughout the world, currently oversees L.A.'s One Wilshire Building, which is the largest and most densely connected communications center in the world, with more than 220 carriers housed there.
**16. DR. MAURICE RAMIREZ, second-in-command in the critical care arena with the DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY, was in the hardest hit area immediately after Katrina hit. Ramirez is the first Central Florida physician to complete the National Disaster Life Support (NDLS) Instructor Program. Ramirez is board certified in emergency medicine, family practice, sports medicine, geriatric medicine and clinical nutrition. Ramirez can comment on what’s happening now and what mistakes were made.
**17. DIANNE STEWART, director of PUBLIC WORKS: THE DEMOS CENTER FOR THE PUBLIC SECTOR, has 20 years of experience inside state government, in the private sector and in a state-level policy NGO working on issues of governance, particularly as they affect low-income families. As the founder and director of the office of governmental affairs at the Texas Department of Human Services and the 11-year executive director of the Center for Public Policy Priorities, Stewart has worked from within and without in efforts to improve the operations and decision-making of state government.
**18. STAN SOLOWAY, president of the PROFESSIONAL SERVICES COUNCIL, can answer questions about the government's special hurricane procurement policies and the role of the private sector in this unprecedented reconstruction effort. The Professional Services Council is the leading advocate on legislative and regulatory policies and practices that affect the government professional and technical services industry. Prior to joining PSC, Soloway served as the deputy undersecretary of defense for acquisition reform.
**19. BILL HINES, managing partner of JONES WALKER, the largest law firm in Louisiana, and respected advisor to Mayor Nagin, is immediate past chair of the City of New Orleans Economic Development Advisory Committee and former director of regional planning organization Metrovision. He has a long-term relationship with the N.O. Regional Chamber of Commerce. The firm will return to the Central Business District office as soon as power and necessary services are working. On the state level, the firm is lobbying for legislation regarding insurance claims for victims. On the federal level, the Washington, D.C., office is assisting the Louisiana delegation with bankruptcy legislation.
**20. BRIAN DRUM, president/CEO of DRUM ASSOCIATES and SBA's NYC Small- Business Person of the Year, brought his company back from the brink of bankruptcy after the terror attacks of Sept. 11. He can offer a blueprint for small-business recovery that includes a post-catastrophe business recovery checklist for all small businesses devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Drum was recently honored by Senator Hillary Clinton for his dedication, courage and commitment to his employees, and by Mayor Michael Bloomberg for the innovative steps he took to save his business after Sept. 11.
**21. HENRY M. KOFFMAN, director of construction engineering and management at USC, is a construction historian who has studied the history of New Orleans and its levees and pumping system. He is an expert in construction engineering; construction management; construction defects; forensic engineering; cost estimating and scheduling; construction safety; labor relations and management; quality assurance; changes in specifications and plans; construction delays; liens; licensing; construction and engineering ethics; globalization; construction education and real estate development.
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