| By Bob Weaver
West Virginia's failure to comply with grant requirements has earned it a penalty from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, believed to be the only state that has restrictions.
State house officials are denying knowledge of the problem which started in 2009.
The findings came in a report from the legislative auditor's office that was shared with the legislative Post Audits Subcommittee.
According to the report, deficiencies in internal control and management at the state Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management prompted FEMA to place the state into a "manual reimbursement" policy.
"The federal action is the result of several years of the state's DHSEM's inability to comply with grant requirements and failure to remedy identified issues," the report states.
The action slows down FEMA money for state disasters.
The audit is based on a Nov. 12, 2015, letter from FEMA sent to former DHSEM Director Jimmy Gianato notifying him of the status change.
That letter notes several instances of DHSEM failing to respond to compliance issues on a timely basis, failing to respond to FEMA's concerns entirely, and instances of FEMA granting extensions or postponing site visits "due to DHSEM's inability to complete the required actions and/or simply not responding within the required timeframe."
Former Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety Secretary Joe Thornton told the legislative auditor's office he had never been notified of the FEMA penalties and has no records notifying him of any such change.
According to an October report from WV MetroNews, Gianato stepped down as DHSEM director and was replaced by his deputy, Michael Todorovich. However, he still serves as a Homeland Security adviser.
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