Hurricane Katrina: Army Corps of Engineers Contract for Mississippi Classrooms

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) tasked the Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) to purchase temporary classrooms for Mississippi schools. To accomplish its task, the Corps placed a $39.5 million order with Akima Site Operations for the purchase and delivery of 450 such classrooms. GAO received an allegation on its Fraud Hotline that the Corps paid inflated prices for the classrooms, and in response, we reviewed the facts and circumstances related to the Corps' issuance of the order.