Big, Easy Money: Disaster Profiteering on the American Gulf Coast

EMBARGOED UNTIL AUGUST 17, 2006 

NEW ORLEANS, LA. & WASHINGTON, D.C.//NEWS ADVISORY//As the first anniversary of Katrina nears, a new report from CorpWatch exposes how abusive disaster profiteering by large corporations - including many of the same mega-firms also engaged in the similarly troubled "reconstruction" of Iraq - has needlessly slowed the reconstruction of New Orleans and the rest of the Gulf Coast region in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

AN EMBARGOED PREVIEW DRAFT COPY OF THE REPORT IS AVAILABLE TO MEDIA AND NON-PROFITS NOW BY REQUEST.

Click here to download the report (on or after August 17, 2006)

Entitled "Big, Easy Money:  Disaster Profiteering on the American Gulf Coast," the new CorpWatch report exposes:

•    How struggling Gulf Coast companies that could be employing thousands of disaster-stricken individuals and supporting the tax bases of local communities are getting a much smaller piece of the reconstruction pie than "connected" companies in such far-removed states as Virginia and Indiana.

•    Double dipping by politically "wired" large corporations that are cleaning up on the reconstruction of both New Orleans/the Gulf Coast and the Iraq - with similarly unimpressive results to show for the billions of dollars handed over to them so far.

•    Abusive "contracting pyramids" that allow big contractors to rake in massive federal payments and then pay out just a fraction of the amount to subcontractors that actually do the work - sometimes less than what is required to actually complete the contracts!

•    Widespread non-payment of reconstruction workers and, in particular, immigrant laborers, whose uncertain status in the U.S. is deliberately distorted by contractors seeking to keep as many federal tax dollars in their own pockets as possible.

The preceding are just a few of the highlights of the key elements of the exhaustive "Big, Easy Money" report, which also focuses on successful community-level initiatives that are thriving with little or no federal tax dollar support.

TO PARTICIPATE:  You can join this live, phone-based news conference (with full, two-way Q&A) at 11 a.m. ET/8 a.m. PT on August 17, 2006 by dialing 1 (800) 860-2442. Ask for the "Katrina Reconstruction and Labor Report" news event.

CAN'T PARTICIPATE?:  A streaming audio replay of the news event will be available on our site as of 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. ET on August 17, 2006.

CONTACT:   Patrick Mitchell, (703) 276-3266 or pmitchell[at]hastingsgroup.com.
 
CorpWatch investigates and exposes corporate violations of human rights, environmental crimes, fraud and corruption around the world.

• 15 Halliburton
• 20 Logistics
• 21 Reconstruction
• 23 Private Security
• 106 Money & Politics
• 174 War & Disaster Profiteers Campaign
• 176 War Profiteers Site
• 185 Corruption
• 187 Privatization
• 197 Press Releases