FEMA deadline changes causing headaches for hoteliers, evacuees

<p>An ever-changing checkout time for hurricane evacuees staying in hotels at federal expense is providing headaches for hoteliers and uncertainty for storm victims.</p><p>Attorneys for evacuees were heartened by the Federal Emergency Management Agency's weekend decision to extend the hotel program beyond Feb. 7. But even as the extension was announced, lawyers were scrambling to keep some evacuees from being put on the street.</p><p>On Monday, attorney Tracie Washington said she'd negotiated an agreement with another hotel group to stave off evictions until at least Friday. That came two days after a judge's emergency order kept one St. Charles Avenue hotel from evicting FEMA-funded occupants of 100 rooms.</p><p>The problem: Hotel managers, who had been told the hurricane program would end Jan. 7, had begun accepting reservations to make up for the lost FEMA business. Each time the deadline gets extended, hoteliers have to find places for the FEMA-paid refugees as well as other visitors in a city where the tourist industry is making a slow comeback.</p><p>"That's the kind of juggling act we're in," said Bill Langkopp, director of the Greater New Orleans Hotel and Lodging Association.</p><p>A federal judge's order in December extended the hotel program until Feb. 7.</p><p>Now, under increasing pressure from attorneys and advocates for the displaced, FEMA has announced it will keep the program going until at least Feb. 13 for evacuees who register with the agency and obtain a special authorization code.</p><p>Evacuees gathered outside The Cotton Exchange hotel in downtown New Orleans Monday morning, saying they were being evicted from the hotel so it could make room for other guests.</p><p>But Washington said Monday afternoon she had worked out an agreement with hotel owner Frank Quinn, who agreed not to let any FEMA evacuees be put out until Friday at the earliest. And efforts would be made to accommodate evacuees beyond Friday if they contact hotel management, said Quinn spokeswoman Betsy Gamble.</p><p>Gamble said hotel management is working to find other rooms for FEMA evacuees. "We were in a precarious position because we had offered confirmations to other visitors," she said.</p><p>In Washington on Monday, FEMA acting director R. David Paulison said FEMA could not prevent hotels from evicting evacuees but pledged to help find other rooms for people who were forced out.</p><p>"We can't control hotel policy. But what we can do is help those people find other hotels," Paulison said at a news conference.</p><p>An estimated 25,000 families remain in hotels _ down from a peak of 85,000 _ at an estimated cost so far of $400 million, Paulison said.</p><p>The new authorization program should help FEMA locate families staying for free in hotels but so far have failed to register or apply for aid. FEMA officials described an isolated number of families believed to be purposely avoiding FEMA for fear they will be evicted if they do not qualify for assistance.</p><p>"I'm not really sure how widespread it is; I'm sure there are probably some out there like that," Paulison said.</p><p>Of the 25,697 families still in hotel rooms as of Sunday, more than half are in Louisiana and Texas, FEMA data show.</p><p>FEMA is paying for just over 8,600 rooms in Louisiana and 7,000 rooms in Texas. The bulk of the rest of the families are in hotels in Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama and California, the data show.</p><p>___</p><p>Associated Press reporters Lara Jakes Jordan in Washington and Mary Foster in New Orleans contributed to this story.</p>