Biden Blacklists Victims – Leaves Them Out To Dry!
(TheRedWire.com) – A series of missteps by the US Forest Service (USFS) led to the biggest wildfire in New Mexico’s history in April. The errors by the federal government caused raging fire to consume 432 homes and 530 square miles of largely private land. In June, President Joe Biden said the administration would bear 100% of homeowners’ costs. Still, it refuses to compensate some victims for the USFS’s negligence.
It appears Biden promised something he couldn’t deliver when he declared the disaster. His emergency order covers the removal of debris and emergency protective measures. He overpromised here since federal relief programs limit the chief executive’s authority. As it stands, the government can’t cover some costs at 100% without congressional approval.
After starting New Mexico fire, U.S. asks victims to pay https://t.co/QmdSQo8Dhc pic.twitter.com/s8GBXxXDHf
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 31, 2022
In one instance, the law mandated a property owner and his family living in a trailer must pay 25% to restore a well damaged by the fire. Federal agencies don’t have the authority to override the law. There are an untold number of similar stories. Even if the land owners agreed to pay the money, it might be a year or longer until the government gets around to fixing it.
This fall, legislation in Congress may pass that would compensate victims at 100%. Until then, the homeowners are partially on the hook. In a region where many people are low-income and don’t have insurance, that’s little consolation.
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