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Senate approves housing aid for Katrina victims

Posted on: Wednesday, 14 September 2005, 19:10 CDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Victims of Hurricane Katrina would receive six months of U.S. aid to help them pay for housing costs under legislation approved by the U.S. Senate on Wednesday.

The measure, approved by voice vote, would provide $3.5 billion in federal funds for temporary rental assistance to people living in the Gulf Coast who were hit by the hurricane on August 29.

The initiative was attached to a spending bill for the fiscal year starting on October 1 that would fund law enforcement and other federal agencies.

While the House of Representatives has passed its own version of the spending bill, it did so before Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and other Gulf Coast areas.

Once the measure passes the Senate, probably this week, differences between the two chambers' bills will have to be worked out.

The funds would help victims pay for relocation expenses, rent, security deposits and utility fees. It also would provide payments to public housing agencies.

There are estimates that more than 1 million people have been displaced by the hurricane.

The U.S. government already has approved $62.3 billion in emergency aid following the hurricane.

Since then, Congress has been looking at a range of additional measures to help victims, prompting some lawmakers to complain about a lack of coordination in legislative efforts.

Source: REUTERS

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