DHS Inspector General on FEMA's Progress: Meh

The text of the new DHS Inspector General's report on FEMA is not publicly available, but GovExec provides a brief summary:

FEMA has made moderate to modest progress in eight of nine of the most important preparedness areas, according to the report...

FEMA has made moderate progress in five areas: overall planning, coordination and support, interoperable communications, logistics and acquisition management.

The agency has made modest progress in three areas: handling evacuations, providing housing for displaced persons, and building a workforce to deal with disasters.

But overall, none of the nine major areas was given the highest rating of making substantial progress.

FEMA has the most need -- rated as making only limited progress -- in clearly defining mission assignments, the report concludes.

In a written response to the report, FEMA Director R. David Paulison said the inspector general did not accurately reflect much of the work his agency has done over the last two years or how some responsibilities fall to other components of the department.

Without details, it's hard to know how accurate this survey is. But duly noted...

Update 2008-04-07: HLS Watch has posted a copy of the report.