Letter: Why the observers on debris clean up?

I share two thoughts about FEMA and the recovery effort from Hurricane Matthew.

First, thanks for taking so much debris from our neighborhoods.

Second, why was there a FEMA observer parked behind the truck picking up debris or cutting tree limbs? My sample size is small (maybe 20 different times) but an observer was always there. I never saw the observers doing any work. Why does FEMA pay inspectors to sit in their cars all day long watching people work, but not working themselves?

Well, it could be to just give the observers jobs and boost payrolls in an area that needs help. Good intentions, but having them do productive work would be better. If the observer has to ensure that all the stuff is hauled away, why do they have to be there all day?

The inspectors could also be there to prevent the contract debris removal and limb cutters from doing too much work. This, I suspect, is the real reason for the expenditure of so much effort.

If true, then here is the ugly truth of how our government agencies view us, the citizens. The government believes that unless a FEMA employee keeps a constant eye on things, then the contractors they hired and the citizens of the affected area will conspire to perform too much work and bankrupt the nation (I add this for humor because we are already bankrupt).

Isn’t there a better way to guarantee that the work gets done according to regulations?

This story was originally published February 14, 2017 at 1:22 PM with the headline "Letter: Why the observers on debris clean up?."