We audited the City of Reading, PA’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2 as part of our annual audit plan to review activities funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) because the City received $5 million in Program funds under the Recovery Act. Our audit objective was to determine whether the City (1) met Program expenditure deadlines, (2) made Program expenditures that were eligible and adequately supported...

We conducted an audit of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) controls over public housing authorities’ (PHA) reporting and accounting for pension and other postemployment benefit obligations. Our concern was whether HUD needed to take action to reduce benefits or provide additional funding to ensure the continued viability of PHAs. Our objectives were to determine whether HUD verified that PHAs (1) submitted...

HUD OIG conducted an evaluation of HUD’s Governmentwide Purchase Card (GPC) Program.  Our objective was to determine whether purchase card transactions complied with prescribed policies and procedures. We selected a total of 73 transactions for review.  Our review indicated that the cardholders did not always ensure that: (1) the availability of funds was properly documented, (2) required sources were used, (3) competitive bids were...

We reviewed the U.S. Department of Housing and Development’s (HUD) process for ensuring that grantee public housing agencies (PHA) receiving American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) Capital Funds complied with Section 152 of the 2005 Energy Act. We reviewed this process because during a recent Recovery Act audit we identified some non-Energy Star compliance and premature replacement purchases and during 2008 grantees paid $...

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Office of Inspector General audited HUD's multifamily housing subsidy payment review process based upon a HUD employee’s complaint. The complaint alleged that HUD lacked controls over its multifamily housing subsidy payment review process and voucher specialists were understaffed and underpaid. Our audit objective was to determine whether HUD had adequate controls over its...

We audited the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer’s (procurement office) administration of interagency agreements (IAAs). This audit was part of our fiscal year 2010 audit plan because of congressional hearings on the use and management of IAAs throughout the Federal Government. Our objective was to determine whether the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) effectively administered its IAAs and the costs to procure these...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) compliance with obligation deadlines and progress toward meeting expenditure requirements related to eight programs funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The objectives of our review were to determine whether HUD obligated ARRA funds in accordance with applicable deadlines and to assess HUD’s oversight of grantees’ expenditure of ARRA funds...

We audited the Philadelphia Housing Authority’s (Authority) use of its Public Housing Capital Fund formula grant that it received under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). We selected the Authority for audit based on a citizen’s complaint alleging misuse of these funds and because it received $126.5 million in Recovery Act capital funds. We focused strictly on $31.5 million of the funds that the Authority...

We audited the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Section 232 program as part of the Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) goal of contributing to the improvement of HUD’s execution and accountability of fiscal responsibilities. Our objective was to determine whether HUD had implemented adequate controls to properly monitor Section 232-insured mortgages. We found that HUD’s Office of Healthcare Programs had taken steps to...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) preclosing and postclosing loan review of new Federal Housing Administration (FHA) direct endorsement lenders to determine whether HUD followed its guidance when (1) reviewing the initial loans underwritten by new FHA direct endorsement lenders and (2) performing the postendorsement technical review of all of the initial loans endorsed by newly approved direct endorsement...

We audited the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD’s) National Servicing Center’s (NSC) Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) as a part of our annual audit plan. Our objective was to determine whether the NSC implemented and operated FHA-HAMP in accordance with rules and regulations. Overall, the NSC implemented and operated FHA-HAMP in accordance with the necessary rules and...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) controls over selected configuration management (CM) activities. This audit was based on work performed during our fiscal year 2009 and 2010 reviews of information system security controls in support of the annual financial statement audits. During those audits, we identified weaknesses in security controls over selected CM activities. HUD had processes and procedures for...

We audited the Philadelphia Housing Authority’s (Authority) payments for outside legal services based on a citizen’s complaint alleging misuse of these funds, our observations and concerns regarding the Authority’s use of outside attorneys on prior audits, and concerns over the large sums the Authority paid for outside legal services reported in the media. The Authority paid $30.5 million for outside legal services provided by 15 law firms...

In January 2010, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Office of Inspector General (OIG) began Operation Watchdog, an initiative to review the underwriting of 15 Federal Housing Administration (FHA) direct endorsement lenders having default and claim rates indicating lender performance problems. The FHA Commissioner had expressed concern regarding the increasing default and claim rates against the FHA insurance fund...

HUD OIG conducted a survey of HUD’s Supportive Housing Program (SHP); specifically, the monitoring of nonprofit subgrantees (project sponsors) that deliver supportive housing and/or supportive services.  We wanted to assess whether SHP grantees followed Federal regulations and HUD guidance on monitoring project sponsor activities and program expenditures. We also wanted to look at HUD’s role in the grantees monitoring of project sponsors....

We have completed an audit of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) information security program. We evaluated whether HUD’s Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) had developed security policies, implemented procedures, and continuously monitored its entitywide information system security program. We performed this audit because it is a required component of our fiscal year 2010 consolidated financial statements...

We conducted an audit the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) oversight of public housing authorities’ (authority) energy conservation procedures through energy performance contracting (EPC) in the states of New York and New Jersey (Region 2). We initiated the audit as part of the activities in our 2010 annual plan. The audit objectives were to determine whether HUD had adequate controls to ensure that (1) the costs of EPC...

We audited the City of Pittsburgh’s (City) administration of its Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds that it received under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). We selected the City for audit because it received a $4.5 million grant, which was the third largest CDBG Recovery Act grant awarded in the State of Pennsylvania and it had disbursed more than half of the grant funds as of July 12, 2010. Our...

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) process for hiring employees in accordance with Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidelines. The audit was initiated due to concerns about whether HUD addressed the staffing needs of its Homeownership Centers in a timely manner to address significant increases in single family mortgage workload. Our audit objective was to determine whether HUD effectively hired...

We audited the District of Columbia’s (grantee) administration of its HOME Investment Partnerships program (HOME) at the request of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Affordable Housing. This is our second and final of two reports issued in relation to the grantee’s administration of its HOME program. The objective addressed in this report was to determine whether the grantee properly administered its HOME...