Katrina Coverage

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Mayor Ray Nagin said Tuesday that New Orleans has to lay off as many as 3,000 workers [all or most "non-essential"], about 50% of its total payroll…

…State and local officials in Louisiana have complained their tax bases were wiped out and aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency has been arriving too slowly.

On Monday, Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco urged President Bush and Congress to allow federal funding of city and county payrolls to keep vital services running.

"FEMA has been appropriated some $60 billion, and as far as we know there's still about $40 billion that's not specifically dedicated to certain expenditures," Blanco said. "FEMA could be allowed to use some of that money to float these local governments in the short term."

See also "Nagin: New Orleans now bankrupt".

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