Paper: FEMA Warned NJ AshBritt Deal Could Jeopardize Federal Funding

The Federal Emergency Management Agency warned the New Jersey state Attorney General's office days after Superstorm Sandy struck that awarding a contract to AshBritt for storm cleanup could jeopardize federal funds, the Star-Ledger reported Friday.

The newspaper reported that, in a letter from U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) to Christie penned in February and obtained under the state's Open Public Records Act, the senator said his office was informed by FEMA that reimbursements to local municipalities and counties could be at risk.

The post-Sandy contract was "piggybacked" from a 2008 contract AshBritt had with Connecticut, the newspaper reported.

Since Lautenberg's letter, however, officials told the Star-Ledger, there have been indications that there would be no issues with reimbursements.

The state's decision to use AshBritt's services for cleanup management in the days after the storm struck have come under fire for pricing issues as well as the fact that a number of politically-connected individuals, including Ocean County Republican Chairman George Gilmore, had been paid by the company as consultants.