Castro defends FEMA recovery role amid House criticism

Sen. Manny T. Castro defended his office's role in helping residents navigate the Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance process following the recent typhoons, responding to criticism from a House member regarding his office's issuance of occupancy and ownership verification letters.

Speaking during the July 30 Senate session on Capitol HIll, Castro said his office became involved after constituents informed him of a backlog in residency and ownership verifications at the Saipan Mayor's Office and the Survivor Recovery Center.

He said he contacted the Joint Information Center, the Emergency Operations Center, and personnel at the multipurpose center to determine how his office could help expedite the process.

"My staff and I have been helping issue occupancy letters and ownership verification letters," Castro said. "Being down there, it helped us understand that a lot of the challenges FEMA is having is not actually because of FEMA, it's because of our government itself."

Castro said his office required applicants to provide supporting documentation, including deeds, residency records, and Commonwealth Utilities Corp. bills, while helping them understand FEMA's documentation requirements.

"We weren't just signing anything. We were educating, at the same time, verifying the documents," he said.

According to Castro, the letters issued by his office were reviewed through FEMA's chain of command and supported by documentation.

He said the focus should instead be on understanding why FEMA was rejecting some verification letters issued by other agencies.

"So what we should be looking at, rather than blaming the person that's actually there helping the people, we should be asking ourselves why FEMA wasn't accepting the different letters from the different agencies," Castro said.

He added that his office helped correct discrepancies in documents submitted to FEMA, including inaccurate property coordinates, conflicting street names, and missing references identifying landowners.

He said he asked FEMA officials whether a letter verifying a property's location and ownership, based on an existing deed, would satisfy documentation requirements.

According to Castro, FEMA officials told him the process involved considerable work, to which he responded that his office was willing to do whatever it could to help residents receive assistance more quickly. Castro also said FEMA personnel told him they had never seen an elected official work alongside agency staff in that capacity.

Castro concluded by defending his office against criticism from another elected official.

"So it is not right for a sitting elected official to criticize the elected official that's actually down there helping the people," Castro said. "So please let's get our facts straight before we confuse our public, because we don't need our public to be angry for no reason. Let's just focus on getting them the help they need."