Katrina Bill Seeks $5B in Mortgage Relief

A $250 billion Hurricane Katrina recovery bill proposed by the Louisiana congressional delegation includes $5 billion to pay for mortgage payment relief.The bipartisan measure, introduced by Louisiana Sens. Mary Landrieu, a Democrat, and David Vitter, a Republican, would allow Katrina victims to skip their mortgage payment for six months. The bill (S. 1765) provides mortgage relief to homeowners in the disaster areas so they can "rebuild their homes without the threat of foreclosure," according to a summary of the bill. "The entire Louisiana delegation has been working together on all the major help that we're going to need from the federal government since Hurricane Katrina hit," Sen. Vitter said. In the Senate, the massive bill is being sliced up into packages for consideration by the appropriate committees, a spokeswoman for Sen. Landrieu said. In the House, the Louisiana delegation is still considering how they want to proceed with the Katrina recovery bill.