(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
Special Inspector General shall report directly to, 
and be under the general supervision of, the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of 
Defense. 
(2) No officer of the Department of Homeland 
Security nor any other officer of the Federal Gov-
ernment shall prevent or prohibit the Special Inspec-
tor General from initiating, carrying out, or com-
pleting any audit or investigation related to Hurri-
cane Katrina recovery activities, or from issuing any 
subpoena during the course of any audit or inves-
tigation. 
(f) DUTIES.— 
(1) It shall be the duty of the Special Inspector 
General to conduct, supervise, and coordinate audits 
and investigations of the treatment, handling, and 
expenditure of amounts appropriated or otherwise 
made available for Hurricane Katrina recovery by 
the Federal Government, and of the programs, oper-
ations, and contracts carried out utilizing such 
funds, including— 
(A) the oversight and accounting of the ob-
ligation and expenditure of such funds;
(B) the monitoring and review of recon-
struction activities funded by such funds; 
(C) the monitoring and review of contracts 
funded by such funds; 
(D) the monitoring and review of the 
transfer of such funds and associated informa-
tion between and among departments, agencies, 
and entities of the United States, and private 
and nongovernmental entities; and 
(E) the maintenance of records on the use 
of such funds to facilitate future audits and in-
vestigations of the use of such funds. 
(2) The Special Inspector General shall estab-
lish, maintain, and oversee such systems, procedures, 
and controls as the Special Inspector General con-
siders appropriate to discharge the duty under para-
graph (1). 
(3) In addition to the duties specified in para-
graphs (1) and (2), the Special Inspector General 
shall also have the duties and responsibilities of in-
spectors general under the Inspector General Act of 
1978. 
(4) In carrying out the duties, responsibilities, 
and authorities of the Special Inspector General 
under this section, the Special Inspector General
shall coordinate with, and receive the cooperation of, 
the Inspectors General of all other Federal depart-
ments and agencies. 
(5) The Special Inspector General shall, within 
10 days after the date of the appointment of the 
Special Inspector General, complete the following: 
(A) Open a 24-hour fraud, waste, and 
abuse hotline. 
(B) Deploy auditors and investigators to 
the Gulf of Mexico Region of the United States. 
(C) Announce a strategic plan for over-
sight, including audits of no-bid contracts. 
(D) Go to the Gulf of Mexico Region of the 
United States media with antifraud message. 
(E) Liaise with Hurricane Katrina recov-
ery Federal agencies to identify vulnerabilities. 
(F) Coordinate interagency oversight ele-
ments through creation of a task force. 
(g) POWERS AND AUTHORITIES.— 
(1) In carrying out the duties specified in sub-
section (f), the Special Inspector General shall have 
the authorities provided in section 6 of the Inspector 
General Act of 1978, including the authorities under 
subsection (e) of such section.
(2) The Special Inspector General shall carry 
out the duties specified in subsection (f)(1) in ac-
cordance with section 4(b)(1) of the Inspector Gen-
eral Act of 1978. 
(h) PERSONNEL, FACILITIES, AND
OTHER
RE-
SOURCES.— 
(1) The Special Inspector General may select, 
appoint, and employ such officers and employees as 
may be necessary for carrying out the duties of the 
Special Inspector General, subject to the provisions 
of title 5, United States Code, governing appoint-
ments in the competitive service, and the provisions 
of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of 
such title, relating to classification and General 
Schedule pay rates. 
(2) The Special Inspector General may obtain 
services as authorized by section 3109 of title 5, 
United States Code, at daily rates not to exceed the 
equivalent rate prescribed for grade GS–15 of the 
General Schedule by section 5332 of such title. 
(3) To the extent and in such amounts as may 
be provided in advance by appropriations Acts, the 
Special Inspector General may enter into contracts 
and other arrangements for audits, studies, analyses, 
and other services with public agencies and with pri-
vate persons, and make such payments as may be 
necessary to carry out the duties of the Special In-
spector General. 
(4)(A) Upon request of the Special Inspector 
General for information or assistance from any de-
partment, agency, or other entity of the Federal 
Government, the head of such entity shall, insofar as 
is practicable and not in contravention of any exist-
ing law, furnish such information or assistance to 
the Special Inspector General, or an authorized des-
ignee. 
(B) Whenever information or assistance re-
quested by the Special Inspector General is, in the 
judgment of the Special Inspector General, unrea-
sonably refused or not provided, the Special Inspec-
tor General shall report the circumstances to the 
Secretary of Homeland Security or the Secretary of 
Defense, as appropriate, and to the appropriate com-
mittees of Congress without delay. 
(5) The Secretary of Homeland Security or the 
Secretary of Defense, as appropriate, shall provide 
the Special Inspector General with appropriate and 
adequate office space at the central and field office 
locations of the Department of Homeland Security, 
together with such equipment, office supplies, and
communications facilities and services as may be 
necessary for the operation of such offices, and shall 
provide necessary maintenance services for such of-
fices and the equipment and facilities located there-
in. 
(i) REPORTS.— 
(1) Not later than 30 days after the end of 
each fiscal year quarter, beginning with the quarter 
following the quarter in which the Special Inspector 
General is appointed, the Special Inspector General 
shall submit to the appropriate committees of Con-
gress a report summarizing for the period of that 
quarter and, to the extent possible, the period from 
the end of such quarter to the time of the submis-
sion of the report, the activities of the Special In-
spector General and the Hurricane Katrina recovery 
activities of the Federal Government. Each report 
shall include, for the period covered by such report, 
a detailed statement of all obligations, expenditures, 
and revenues associated with recovery activities for 
Hurricane Katrina, including the following: 
(A) Obligations and expenditures of appro-
priated funds. 
(B) Accounting of the costs incurred to 
date for Hurricane Katrina recovery, together