Victims of LA Fires Left Out of $100 Million Raised for Them

The disastrous Los Angeles fires early this year caused damage worth billions of dollars. Shortly afterwards, the FireAid benefit concert raised some $100 million to help the victims of these devastating fires. But six months later, none of the affected residents of the area have reportedly received any aid from the funds. Where did the money go?

Investigative journalist Sue Pascoe, who lost her house to the fires, has been trying to find the answer to this question and she had some success in her quest. Last week, Pascoe appeared on Fox News to share what she learnt when she asked The Annenberg Foundation, the organization responsible for overseeing the funds, about how the concert funds were distributed.  And she was left speechless when she was told by the organization’s spokesperson that the victims of the wildfires weren’t going to get the money. Moneywise.com wrote of Pascoe (July 18):

She was shocked to learn that the FireAid proceeds would not go to residents affected by the devastating fires. Instead, the money would be distributed to several nonprofits affiliated with the Annenberg Foundation.

Following the thread of her investigation, Pascoe then looked further into what nonprofits received the funds and whether they distributed the money to the deserving residents affected by the fires. She found that more than 100 nonprofits received $50 million from the FireAid benefit concert money. She asked some of those organizations about the money and then verified from the respective residents that they were supposed to help. Pascoe found that the victims had not received any help or service.

Republican congressman from Northern California Kevin Kiley posted the video clip of Pascoe’s interview with Fox on his X page, adding that he had asked Attorney General Pam Bondi for an investigation into this matter. Kiley noted that many of these nonprofits have nothing to do with fire relief.

Independent journalist James Li did his own research on the FireAid proceeds story and revealed some interesting findings including the information that The Annenberg Foundation spends only one-third of their annual funds on actual charity programs while two-thirds are spent within the organization on “administrative costs.”

The left-leaning CBS News presented a counter narrative on the issue of accountability and transparency, including praise for the nonprofits that had received the funds. Citing an investigation by the Los Angeles Times – also a left-leaning publication, the story wrote:

The LA Times reported that the funds reached those organizations and that the money was a lifeline, helping to feed survivors, clothe fire victims, provide mental health services and save animals’ lives.

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