Read the report: See what an investigative audit of the Oklahoma City Disaster Relief Fund found.
Complete coverage: Read past stories and view documents related to the Oklahoma City Disaster Relief Fund.
OKLAHOMA CITY - An audit of a foundation's fund to help Oklahoma City bombing survivors found that the "overwhelming majority" of requests for assistance were approved and that only a few survivors had "fallen between the cracks."
The audit of Oklahoma City's Disaster Relief Fund, released Thursday, states that "nothing in the governing documents indicates its purpose was to be a compensation fund to be shared among the survivors."
But the report recommends redirecting millions of dollars that had been moved elsewhere back to the relief fund and implementing policies to better ensure that survivors get help when needed.
The fund was established to help survivors of the April 19, 1995, bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, which killed 168 people and injured hundreds more. According to the audit, the fund has paid approximately $11.2 million "to help more than 1,000 survivors and children, to help fund the Oklahoma City National Memorial ... and to provide case management assistance to survivors." Because of earnings on investments, $10 million remains in the fund.
The Oklahoma City Community Foundation, which administers the fund, announced in November following a Tulsa World investigation that it would seek an audit of the fund.
Numerous survivors told the World they had concerns about the handling of the fund and that the foundation had denied their requests for bombing-related medical, education and living expenses while pushing them to apply for government programs and other forms of assistance.
The audit of the Oklahoma City Disaster Relief Fund was performed by Springfield, Mo.-based BKD LLP.
"During our investigation, it became apparent through the BKD Information Line and interviews with survivors that a few had fallen 'between the cracks,' " the audit states. "The (fund) had lost contact with a few survivors and became aware of some not previously known. Some recently contacted the DRF (Disaster Relief Fund) directly to have their case evaluated."
Payments limited
More than $40 million in donations to help survivors poured into various funds after the bombing, and the foundation received $14.6 million after the funds were consolidated.
"Because of questions being raised by certain persons in media reports, BKD's national forensic audit team was asked to conduct a complete review of the Disaster Relief Fund's operations," said Steven C. Davis, board chairman of the Oklahoma City Community Foundation.
"The very comprehensive review they conducted clearly refutes any allegations about alleged misuse of funds contributed to the Disaster Relief Fund but also provides a balanced analysis of any areas where improvements could be made. The Oklahoma City Community Foundation will consider those recommendations, with a view toward continuing to provide the best service possible to survivors, donors and the community."
Records show that the foundation's policies limit total payment for living expenses, education and mental health care per person. The policies also state that those seeking payment for educational expenses should exhaust all other possible forms of payment first.
The audit states that a "theme of the DRF trying to help some survivors become self-sufficient" and rely on other resources first, such as Medicaid, "in general followed the regulations promulgated by the IRS."
Deloris Watson's grandson P.J. Allen, who at 20 months old was the youngest survivor of the bombing, was severely injured in the building's day care center. She said it's unfair to expect taxpayers and Medicaid to cover Allen's medical expenses while millions of dollars remain in the relief fund.
The foundation refused to pay for an out-of-state surgery to remove his tracheotomy tube and other expenses, she said.
"They have not been covering this child's major medical expenses," she said. Doctors have said her grandson will likely need a lung transplant in the future because of damage his lungs suffered in the bombing.
The remaining funds need to focus on the long-term medical needs of the survivors, Watson said.
'Agency confusion'
Auditors "did not find evidence of an outside analysis or study to develop an estimate of future demands on the fund for the future medical costs of critically injured survivors," the report states.
Watson and other survivors are also critical of a foundation decision in 2005 to reallocate $4.4 million from the fund to other causes, including donations to other disaster funds and studies that have never been conducted.
The audit states that those funds were "reallocated" for long-term use and are "still available at the (Oklahoma City Community Foundation) if the (Disaster Relief Fund) should need these funds," except for $20,000 donated to relief for victims of tornadoes in Joplin, Mo., and Birmingham, Ala.
Money being sent to aid disasters outside of Oklahoma "could be perceived as falling outside of the intent of the donors and the DRF," and the audit recommends returning "at least some" of the $4.4 million back to the relief fund.
Some survivors said they had no idea funds remained to help them as they struggled to pay for their own needs. The bombing fund was not listed on the foundation's website until a World story about the conflict was published in November, when it was added to the online list of funds.
Allegations that survivors' requests for funding were improperly denied are either errors or misunderstandings, the foundation has said. The audit says it found that some of those misunderstandings were due to "agency confusion" on the part of survivors.
Nancy Anthony, executive director of the foundation, has declined interview requests and said the foundation cannot talk about individual cases due to the need for confidentiality.
Foundation officials said about 1,000 people have received assistance with medical bills, living expenses, college tuition and related needs since the fund was established following the bombing.
About 50 percent of the donations to the fund were earmarked for education, and the fund has provided $3.92 million in educational assistance since 1995, the audit states.
"Since 1995, the overriding goal of all involved has been to assist families, individuals and the community in dealing with the effects of the bombing," Davis said. "The Community Foundation's trustees and staff are passionately committed to assisting survivors and their families, fulfilling donors' intent and providing certainty that the fund is properly administered in accordance with the law."
The foundation also said it follows strict IRS guidelines in distributing the money.
'Put to rest'
Members of a group calling itself the Survivor Tree Committee expressed concern in November about a lack of transparency in the foundation's process related to the audit and the fund operations.
Holly Sweet, a member of the Survivor Tree Committee, said the group had concerns about the process used to conduct the audit.
"I don't feel like the auditors are addressing the issues raised by victims' families and survivors," she said.
Following the World's initial story about the fund in November, the group hand delivered a letter to Gov. Mary Fallin's office and sent letters to other officials asking for help. The letter was signed by Sweet, Watson and Gloria Chipman, whose husband, Robert Chipman, died in the bombing.
The group's letter requested removal of the funds from the foundation's control and to have the money distributed based on need to bombing survivors.
The audit states that the relief fund was never designed to be divided up and given directly to victims and that the foundation should consider obtaining an IRS private letter ruling to "put to rest" many of the issues as to what can and cannot be done with the remaining funds.
Watson said that "if they had been doing what they should have been doing, no one would be asking them to divide up the fund."
A World story in November reported that the foundation spent $1.1 million to help 166 survivors of the bombing in the last three fiscal years, slightly more than it earned from investing the money during that time.
Audit findings
In its report, BKD writes:
- The Oklahoma City Disaster Relief Fund governing documents, IRS guidance and donor documentation never suggested the DRF was established to be a fund to be divided among the survivors or others affected by the bombing.
- During our investigation, it became apparent through the BKD Information Line and interviews with survivors that a few had fallen "between the cracks." The DRF had lost contact with a few survivors and became aware of some not previously known. Some recently contacted the DRF directly to have their case evaluated.
- Auditors did not find evidence of an outside analysis or study to develop an estimate of future demands on the fund for the future medical costs of critically injured survivors.
- There has been occasional "agency confusion" over the years where some survivors did not differentiate among the agencies which had been providing aid to them. Auditors saw at least one example where a survivor was receiving counseling assistance from another agency and was suddenly told by that agency there would be no more funds available. A few of the survivors we interviewed expressed frustration over this and not knowing about the DRF and its ability to help after another agency stopped providing assistance.
The $4.4 million in funds that were reallocated for long-term use using investment earnings are still available at the OCCF if the DRF should need these funds, except with respect to the $20,000 given to other disaster funds. This reallocation appears to have caused concerns from a donor and public perception standpoint. In particular, the money that was used for disasters outside of the Oklahoma area ($10,000 for Joplin, Mo., and $10,000 for Birmingham, Ala.) could be perceived as falling outside of the intent of the donors and the DRF.
Cary Aspinwall 918-581-8477 Ziva Branstetter 918-581-8306
cary.aspinwall@tulsaworld.com ziva.branstetter@tulsaworld.com
Original Print Headline: Audit: OKC bombing fund fulfilled most relief requests
