Red Cross Offers Few Details on Its Use of Sandy Donations

The American Red Cross says it has spent or committed $291-million of the $312-million it raised for Superstorm Sandy relief but has given little information on how it has used the money, ProPublica writes.

The Red Cross releases raw numbers of specific services provided, such as relief items distributed and shelter stays, but gives dollar-figure breakdowns only in broad categories like “food and shelter” and “housing and community assistance,” and does not say how much money has been committed but not yet disbursed. Such reporting differences make it difficult to determine how, where, and when Sandy funds have been distributed, according to ProPublica.

“It would be helpful to know where people received assistance and how much, and when,” said Ben Smilowitz of the Disaster Accountability Project, which tracks Red Cross disaster response. “You might actually see that some neighborhoods received more than others in equal need.”

The Red Cross has weathered criticism over the pace and level of its Sandy spending in the year and a half since the storm. Spokeswoman Anne Marie Borrego said the charity continually updates its Web site with stories about how it is using disaster donations.