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By ASSOCIATED PRESSCongress will convene to consider the emergency request this weekend.
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration intends to seek $10 billion to cover immediate relief needs in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, congressional officials said today, and lawmakers decided to break off their summer vacation to approve the request by the weekend.
Several officials said the $10 billion would cover immediate costs for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the government's front-line responder in cases of natural disasters.
FEMA is spending an estimated $500 million a day as it struggles to respond to devastating flooding in New Orleans and severe destruction that spans the length of the Gulf Coast from Louisiana to Florida.
It is not necessary for all members of Congress to return to Washington to approve the funding. Several aides indicated the funds would be approved without a roll call vote, a so-called "voice vote" practice often used when there is no dissent about a piece of legislation.