Emergency Initiative for Haiti Earthquake Relief (Law'ed)

[Badger]

I believe some of the concerns about specifics on how to spend relief funds may be overstated, but also have a grain of truth as well. I adopted the $100 million figure to mirror RL, as well as what appears to be a reasonable initial response. I likewise considered specifically allocating the aid funds to the Atlasian Agency for International Development, but couldn't find enough specific info yesterday regarding to which agencies the RL emergency funds would be disbursed, and feared that the $100 million would be disbursed to a large number of US agencies in addition to USAID that are also involved in the relief operation. Accordingly, I left the specific agency allocation in my proposal a bit nebulous in trust the Lief Administration would allocate the funds appropriately and efficiently.

Doing some further research in the news today it appears that the vast majority, if not all, of the aid funds in RL will be administered by USAID, which is coordinating the Administration's relief efforts. Upon further consideration I suspect USAID has reasonable discretion under the executive branch to allocate relief funds to other government agencies, the UN, or NGOs if necessary to help implement relief efforts, as would the Atlasian Agency for International Development.

SO, I therefore offer the following amendment:

Emergency Initiative for Haiti Earthquake Relief

By it resolved and enacted:

1) The government of Atlasia appropriates $100 million to the Atlasian Agency for International Development for humanitarian relief, aid, and reconstruction for the victims of the recent devastating earthquake in Haiti.

2) The Atlasian government pledges full cooperation with and support of efforts of the United Nations and NGO relief agencies in efforts to extend relief and security to the people of Haiti.

Hopefully this should sufficiently address concerns by keeping appropriation and disbursement of relief funds under Atlasian aid workers control and discretion. Obviously the professionals who work in disaster relief field would be loathe to give their desperately needed aid dollars to any government or private entity it can't trust to do the job.

Long term issues regarding bureaucratic inefficiency and corruption in Haiti will not be resolved by this bill, but nor should that delay it's prompt passage. Simply put, the time to audit a bank's books is not while it's being held up at gunpoint. Keeping the fundamental control and discretion of aid spending under the Atlasia government through AAID administration is sufficient and all that can be expected in any disaster, whether in Haiti or elsewhere.

With this change I hope we can now pass this desperately needed humanitarian measure immediately.

[Badger]

I echo the words of my colleagues. There doesn't seem to be any loopholes in this legislation, and Haiti is in need of all the aid it can get.

No loopholes?

What about the concerns, Hashemite and I raised.

You know, one of the things about being a new Senator is, I need to take time to think more deeply about the bills that are put forth. I assumed that the money would be distributed through the United Nations, but I also recall, for example, in Iraq, how that money can be used for the wrong purposes when in the hands of rogue governments, and I don't think I can name many more governments more corrupt than the Haitian government.

Exactly why I put forth the amendment.

[Badger]

The earliest possible time to introduce a cloture motion is 6:30:46 PM Jan 17, 2010.

Is there any reason not to move directly to a vote at that time without the dlay of holding a separate cloture vote? Assuming no one else has stated new objections to the bill.

[Badger]

Aye, ftr. (obviously, )