PHA Didn't Properly Administer Its Housing Choice Voucher Program

HUD’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) audited the Housing Choice Voucher program of a PHA in Crisfield, Md., after receiving a complaint alleging that it misused public housing funds. The audit’s objective was to determine whether the PHA: (1) ensured that families met eligibility requirements; (2) properly admitted families from the waiting list; (3) correctly calculated housing assistance payments and maintained documentation to support the calculations; (4) ensured that confidential information was properly transmitted electronically; and (5) detected and prevented conflict-of-interest situations. 

Auditors found that the PHA didn’t: (1) ensure that families met eligibility requirements; (2) always maintain adequate documentation to show that it properly selected families from its waiting list; (3) always make accurate housing assistance payments and utility reimbursements; (4) always maintain documentation to support housing assistance payments and utility reimbursements; and (5) use HUD’s Enterprise Income Verification system to verify household income.

Auditors stated that the PHA also failed to properly safeguard confidential information and detect and prevent conflict-of-interest situations. These conditions occurred because the PHA didn’t ensure that the responsible staff member was adequately trained to efficiently administer the program and the executive director didn’t properly supervise the staff member. Auditors also found that it made ineligible and unsupported housing and utility reimbursements totaling $373,933 and received $42,752 in unsupported administrative fees.

OIG recommended that HUD direct the PHA to: (1) provide documentation to support $280,561 (housing assistance payments totaling $237,809 and $42,752 in administrative fees) or reimburse its program from non-federal funds for any funds it cannot support; (2) reimburse $17,101 to its program from non-federal funds or to the appropriate household for miscalculating housing assistance; and (3) reimburse its program $119,023 from non-federal funds for ineligible payments it made due to the conflict-of-interest situations. OIG also recommended that HUD’s Departmental Enforcement Center evaluate the apparent conflict-of-interest situations in the report and pursue administrative sanctions if warranted.

• HUD Audit 2018-PH-1003