The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has had a debate regarding whether the manufacturers of the trailers used to temporarily house Katrina victims were responsible for the high levels of formaldehyde emissions that were measured or not. The committee questioned representatives of the 4 companies whose products presented the highest levels of emissions, namely Gulf Stream Coach Inc, Pilgrim International, Keystone RV and Forest River.

The committee took this decision as it was found out that the possibility that the makers knew about the formaldehyde levels but haven’t told FEMA about it exists. It seems that tests made to 11 such trailers found that 4 of them presented such high levels of emissions, that if they were found in a factory, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration would have required medical monitoring for people exposed to them.

Mr. Jim Shea, the chairman of Gulf Stream Coach, declared that he knew about the high levels of formaldehyde emissions, but that his company hasn’t made the information public since FEMA also knew about it, but took no steps in that directions. Mr. Jim Shea also said that the results came from informal tests, and that FEMA refused any further tests after being presented with the results, even though the company insisted they should be carried out.

While Republicans rushed to defend the trailer manufacturers, Democrats thought that they hold a certain amount of guilt. Even though there are no regulations as to which levels of formaldehyde emissions found in trailers should be regarded as being safe, Democrats considered that it was the companies’ responsibility not to make any trailers that would have endangered people’s health.