Federal monies that are spent weatherizing the homes of poor people are being wasted at a prodigious rate due to terrible workmanship.The Chicago Tribune: As CEDA's part in the federal stimulus program heads into its final months, contractors continue to fail 1 in 7 inspections, and a federal plan to fix mistakes revealed in a blistering audit last year still hasn't been completed, federal officials said.Even with limited oversight of the work, government inspectors have found gas leaks, poorly insulated walls, missing shut-off valves and other shoddy and sometimes dangerous work, records show. Several contractors installed the wrong equipment or billed for materials that were never used, inspectors found.And by the state doling out money to a nonprofit, which is not subject to open-records laws, officials have kept from the public how millions of taxpayer dollars are spent. CEDA refused to provide information about its contractors, some of which have lengthy records of complaints,...(Read Full Post)