HOUSTON (AP) _ Chambers County officials are defending their spending of tens of millions of federal dollars for cleanup from Hurricane Ike after a federal audit questioned whether the money was properly used.
The Southeast Texas county was devastated by the September 2008 storm.
An audit report by the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General recommended last month that much of the $45 million already paid to contractors and approved by county administrators be disallowed.
The review cited non-competitive contracts, shoddy or non-existent record-keeping and ineligible and unsupported costs.
The county, in a written response Monday, emphatically denied what it says are unfounded allegations made or inferred with respect to any wrongdoing. County officials said contracts were handled with their best good faith effort to follow the law.
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