The city of New Orleans this morning breathes a sigh of relief as it now has two more years to complete FEMA-funded Hurricane Katrina repairs.
There may also be extensions for other programs to come.
With the extension announced last last week, New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno says the city of New Orleans is no longer faced with being caught holding a half-billion dollar bag for drainage infrastructure and street repairs.
"They've given us until mid-2028 to get the job done, and we will get the job done," the mayor said.
Moreno said without the extension, she doesn't know how the city would have come up with that much money on its own.
"It would have been nearly impossible to figure out a path to get these repairs done," she said.
FEMA says it may consider extensions for funds to repair the municipal auditorium and Sewerage and Water Board work in the French Quarter, too.
The federal agency says it will be auditing New Orleans; expenditures and if it finds the city did not follow federal laws and regulations, it will not only rescind the extension, FEMA will want the money it has given the city to be paid back.
