We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) oversight of enhanced vouchers provided under its Housing Choice Voucher program based on our annual audit plan.  We focused on vouchers administered by three New York agencies because the related subsidies represented 59 percent of the total monthly housing subsidies associated with enhanced vouchers nationwide.  Our objective was to determine whether HUD had...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) public housing program.  We conducted the audit as part of our annual audit plan and a congressional request.  Specifically, Congressman David P. Roe requested that we review the number of families residing in government-subsidized housing whose income exceeded current income limits.  Our audit objective was to determine the extent to which HUD-subsidized...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) implementation and oversight of compliance with environmental requirements as part of the HUD Office of Inspector General’s annual audit plan to contribute to improving HUD’s execution of and accountability for its fiscal responsibilities.  Our objective was to determine whether HUD, specifically its Offices of Housing; Public Housing, and Native American Programs...

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General audited HUD’s monitoring of the community service and self-sufficiency requirement (CSSR)  to determine the extent to which HUD subsidized public housing units occupied by noncompliant tenants and housing for tenants whose CSSR status was misreported. We found that HUD subsidized housing for 106,000 units occupied by noncompliant tenants, out of nearly...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) oversight of public housing agencies’ lobbying activities based on information we obtained while resolving recommendations from an audit of the Philadelphia Housing Authority which showed that the Authority engaged in lobbying activities that it failed to disclose.  Our audit objective was to determine whether HUD oversight was adequate to ensure that public housing...

Based on a hotline complaint and additional work by our Financial Audit Division and Office of Legal Counsel, we reviewed whether a conflict of interest existed within the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH). Specifically, former PIH Assistant Secretary Sandra B. Henriquez appointed Debra Gross, a former lobbyist and the deputy director of the Council of Large Public Housing...

Preliminary Research Closeout Memorandum In 2011, HUD established a high priority goal to reduce vacancies through improved management of the public housing inventory. Since then, HUD has substantially reduced vacancies, saving taxpayer dollars and enhancing the availability of habitable rental units. Subsidized vacancies, measured in unit months, have decreased from approximately 550,000 in 2011 to approximately 379,000 currently. The...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) process for awarding asset repositioning fees (ARF) to public housing agencies (PHA) with approved demolition and dispostion projects.  We initiated this review based upon issues disclosed during our review of Public Housing Capital Fund program grants to PHAs with approved demolition and dispostion projects.  The audit objective was to determine whether HUD had...

We audited HUD’s Office of Native American Programs’ (ONAP) Indian Community Development Block Grant (ICDBG) program grant closeout process based on data received from Southwest ONAP and additional analysis that raised concerns regarding ONAP’s oversight of the grant closeout process.  Our objective was to determine whether ONAP had adequate controls to ensure the timely closeout of program grants. HUD’s ONAP did not have adequate controls...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) methodology and monitoring regarding the Office of Public Housing’s asset management fees and central office cost centers due to our concerns over potential misspending by public housing authorities and the lack of restrictions in the use of such funds.  Our objective was to determine how HUD arrived at the asset management fee limits in its Public Housing Operating...

We reviewed the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, (HUD), Office of Public and Indian Housing’s Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) program regarding HUD’s implementation and monitoring.  We initiated our review because there had been no prior Office of Inspector General reviews of the HUD-VASH program.  Our objective was to determine whether HUD’s implementation and monitoring of the program was adequate. ...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Inventory Management System-Public and Indian Housing Information Center (IMS/PIC) inventory data related to public housing demolition and disposition projects.  The objective of the audit was to determine whether HUD adequately monitored the demolition and disposition projects to ensure the reliability of IMS/PIC inventory data and awarded appropriate Capital Fund...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) oversight of Public and Indian Housing program interfund transactions. Our objective was to determine whether HUD (1) had adequate procedures to identify, monitor, and evaluate public housing agencies (PHA) with interfunds, and (2) took appropriate actions to curtail improper practices when borrowing from restricted HUD programs was found. HUD officials adequately...

We completed a review of HUD’s monitoring and administration of the Housing Choice Voucher Family Self-Sufficiency (HCV FSS) program.  The review was included in OIG’s annual audit plan and contributes to OIGs objective of improving HUD’s execution of and accountability for grant funds.  The objectives of the review were to determine whether HUD officials sufficiently monitored public housing agencies (PHA) to encourage the use of the...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) oversight of its Moving to Work Demonstration program based on the HUD Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) initiative to focus HUD management’s attention on problem areas on which we and others have reported over the years.  Our objective was to determine whether HUD had implemented adequate program controls to effectively monitor participant agencies’ performance and...

 We audited the selection and award of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) fiscal year 2010  HOPE VI revitalization grants, based on a hotline complaint alleging that HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) (1) selected and awarded fiscal year 2011 HOPE VI funds to grantees that applied for fiscal year 2010 grants but did not publish a notice of funding availability (NOFA) for its fiscal year 2011...

The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General audited HUD’s Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC) to determine whether it ensured that independent auditors followed Statement on Auditing Standards (SAS) 99 audit requirements. REAC did not always ensure that independent auditors followed SAS 99 requirements. It did not identify deficiencies in 10 of the 11 deficient engagements we reviewed. For the one...

We completed a review of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Native American Programs’ (ONAP) annual audit reporting process primarily in response to complaints that ONAP did not take appropriate enforcement action for two grantees that failed to submit required annual audits. Our objective was to determine whether ONAP provided adequate oversight of its grantees nationwide to ensure grantee compliance with...

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of the Inspector General (OIG) audited HUD’s Public Housing Capital Fund program and American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act) Capital Fund program monitoring procedures because it was included in our annual audit plan and was prompted by a prior external audit (OIG audit report 2011-LA-1802, issued May 5, 2011). Our objective was to determine whether HUD’s Capital...

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD), Office of Inspector General reviewed HUD’s receivership of the East St. Louis Housing Authority based on the length of receivership and issues identified during recent external audits. Our objective was to determine whether HUD effectively oversaw and managed the recovery and turnaround of the Authority during the three-year period ending in September 2011. HUD did not effectively...