I am left a bit puzzled, though - where do people think their charity dollars go? What do they think the Red Cross is, for instance, if not an NGO? Almost all donations after disasters go through a middle-man of some nature. The good charities pass 80-90% on to the victims; the bad ones, like those clowns who call and ask for money for policemen, pass on 8-12%.
Auditing charities is always a good idea, and good charities will welcome it - as long as the audits are done in good faith.
My points about FEMA were bonus education.