A recent report discusses efforts to make a FEMA list that documents where residents displaced by the hurricanes are living a matter of public record.

Judge shields FEMA list from N.O. legislators
BATON ROUGE (AP) — Two New Orleans legislators failed to show a FEMA list that documents where residents displaced by the hurricanes are living was a public record, a state judge decided.

State District Judge William Morvant also said Monday that state Reps. Charmaine Marchand and Cedric Richmond, Democrats who represent heavily damaged areas of New Orleans, hadn't shown that the state official who holds the records has a duty to turn them over.

But Morvant did give the legislators' attorneys 15 days to amend their lawsuit and he may hear further arguments in the case.

State Sen. Cleo Fields, a lawyer who represented Marchand and Richmond, said he expects to have the amended lawsuit filed quickly and another hearing on the matter could come as soon as Wednesday.

Marchand and Richmond said they were seeking the list so they could contact their constituents.

The lawmakers initially sued Attorney General Charles Foti Jr. but later amended the lawsuit to include Secretary of State Al Ater after learning he had access to the voting list from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The FEMA list, contained on a compact disc, includes the names, current locations, e-mail addresses and phone numbers where Louisiana residents applied for disaster assistance after the hurricanes.

Assistant Attorney General Tina Grant told Morvant that FEMA has made it clear putting out the information for any reason other than voting purposes would be a violation of the Federal Privacy Act of 1974. She said the list includes many people who aren't registered to vote and people who do not want the "unsolicited and unwanted contact."

Johnathan Augustine, another attorney for the legislators, said Louisiana public records law requires the information be turned over unless there is a law barring its dissemination.

"We are not asking for anything protected by the Federal Privacy Act," Augustine said

 To view the online report please click on the following link;

Judge shields FEMA list from N.O. legislators