Pelosi, in N.O., talks up Cazayoux

• By ALLEN M. JOHNSON JR.
• Advocate New Orleans bureau
• Published: Jul 23, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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NEW ORLEANS — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi gave fellow Democrat and newly elected U.S. Rep. Don Cazayoux a public thumbs-up before heading back to Washington, D.C., on Tuesday.

Meeting on Monday with housing advocates for people left homeless by Hurricane Katrina, Pelosi praised Cazayoux, D-New Roads, for authoring successful, partisan-approved legislation to expedite the rebuilding of public housing after disasters — less than three months after he took office.

Cazayoux took office May 6. Shortly thereafter, he authored H.R. 6276, which allows the Federal Emergency Management Agency to directly assist public housing agencies trying to rebuild from a disaster.

The measure passed both houses of Congress as the Public Housing Disaster Relief Act of 2008. Pelosi said President Bush will sign Cazayoux’s bill into law this week.

Members of Congress are always looking for ways to reduce bureaucratic “red tape,” but “to do it in a few months is quite remarkable,” Pelosi said.

Cazayoux’s bill removed a hurdle that prevented FEMA from more quickly accessing federal disaster funds involving certain properties owned by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

“As we have seen too often, the biggest obstacle that Gulf Coast residents face is not the will to rebuild; it is red tape from the federal government,” Cazayoux said when his bill unanimously passed the House on June 18.

Cazayoux represents the entire parishes of East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, Livingston, St. Helena, East Feliciana and West Feliciana and parts of Pointe Coupee, Iberville and Ascension.