We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes’ (OLHCHH) oversight of Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control (LBPHC) and Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration (LHRD) grant programs.  These programs help reduce lead hazards in low-income households, particularly with young children.  Between fiscal years 2020 and 2022, OLHCHH awarded more than $353 million in…

We contracted with the independent public accounting firm of Sikich CPA LLC to audit the financial statements of FHA as of and for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2025, and to provide reports on FHA’s (1) internal control over financial reporting and (2) compliance with laws, regulations, contracts, and grant agreements and other matters.  Our contract with Sikich required that the audit be performed in accordance with U.S.…

We audited the Puerto Rico Public Housing Administration’s management of lead‐based paint in its public housing program based on our assessment of the risks of lead‐based paint in public housing.  The risk factors assessed included the age of buildings, the number of units, and reported cases of childhood lead poisoning.  The Puerto Rico Public Housing Administration (Authority) is the second largest public housing agency (…

Beginning in 2021, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General (OIG), conducted several audits to assess HUD’s anti-fraud efforts and to develop inventories of fraud risks in HUD programs. Our previous work found that HUD’s fraud risk management program was in its early stages of development, and we recommended that HUD perform program-specific fraud risk assessments and incorporate these…

The Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014 (FISMA) directs Inspectors General to conduct an annual evaluation of the agency information security program. FISMA, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) establish information technology (IT) security guidance and standards for Federal agencies. We conducted this evaluation to…

We contracted with the independent public accounting firm of Sikich CPA LLC to audit the financial statements of HUD as of and for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2025, and to provide reports on HUD’s (1) internal control over financial reporting and (2) compliance with laws, regulations, contracts, and grant agreements and other matters, including whether financial management systems complied substantially with the requirements…

We contracted with the independent public accounting firm Sikich CPA LLC to audit the financial statements of Ginnie Mae as of and for the years ending September 30, 2025 and 2024, and to provide reports on Ginnie Mae’s (1) internal control over financial reporting and (2) compliance with laws, regulations, contracts, and grant agreements and other matters. Our contract with Sikich required that the audit be performed in accordance…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to determine whether HUD had adequate oversight of the physical condition of the public housing units that converted to non-Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured project-based vouchers (PBV) under RAD.We found HUD needs to improve its oversight of the physical condition of converted projects.  Before the implementation of its PBV monitoring pilot program…

Under the Lead Safe Housing Rule (LSHR), owners of multifamily properties receiving assistance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) must comply with specific requirements following reports that a child under the age of 6 residing in an assisted unit has a confirmed elevated blood lead level (EBLL).  Some of these requirements are (1) ensuring that an environmental investigation is conducted to determine…

HUD’s Office of Single Family Housing did not consistently monitor its Field Service Management (FSM) contractors’ property preservation and protection services.  Specifically, HUD provided inconsistent monitoring for 34 of the 79 statistically sampled records we reviewed, and these involved discrepancies between HUD’s assessment, the support, and the performance work statement.  HUD did not develop and apply a clear and…

HUD did not comply with PIIA because it did not report compliant improper and unknown payment estimates for the Office of Public and Indian Housing’s Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (PIH-TBRA) program and the Office of Multifamily Housing Programs’ Project-Based Rental Assistance (MF-PBRA) program.   These were HUD’s two largest program expenditures, totaling more than $50 billion in fiscal year 2024.  This noncompliance…

To determine whether all the unexpended obligations of HUD are valid and meet funding guidelines, the Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) coordinates annually an Open Obligation Review (OOR) of all program and administrative funds. This review determines which funds are still needed and certifies to Treasury that the funds remaining in its obligation balance at the end of the fiscal year represent future obligations for the…

The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) leads and coordinates the Nation’s drug policy to improve the health and lives of the American people, including the development and implementation of the National Drug Control Strategy (the Strategy).  ONDCP evaluates the effectiveness of national drug control policy efforts, the Strategy’s goals and objectives, and each National Drug Control Program Agency’s program-level…

In an effort to increase transparency and accountability in the use of Federal funding in program activities, Federal law and guidance requires the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and its prime recipients to ensure that complete and accurate subaward data is posted on USASpending.gov.  We audited HUD to determine whether the prime award recipients of HUD funding met all of the Federal Funding Accountability…

We audited the Boston Housing Authority’s public housing program to determine whether the physical condition of the Authority’s program units complied with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) and the Authority’s requirements.  The audit was initiated based on our assessment of risks associated with public housing agencies’ program units and recent media attention and public concern about the condition of…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) development of requirements documents is a collaboration across HUD program offices.  The Office of the Chief Procurement Officer (OCPO) is responsible for obtaining all goods and services required by HUD efficiently and in the most cost-effective manner possible, while program offices are responsible for preparing the requirements documents and submitting an actionable…

HUD’s Office of Housing contracts with performance-based contract administrators to administer the housing assistance payments (HAP) contract with owners.  Through RAD, HUD oversees the HAP contracts for converted properties and monitors owners for compliance with HUD’s requirements, which include maintaining (1) units in decent, safe, and sanitary condition and (2) reserve for replacement accounts to help defray the cost of…

We obtained the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) two nondisclosure policies and two nondisclosure forms applicable to HUD employees.  We also obtained 13 nondisclosure agreements between HUD and HUD employees.  The nondisclosure policies, forms, and agreements did not include the anti-gag provision as required by the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA) of 2012.  HUD had not ensured…

The OIG evaluated the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) progress in applying zero trust security principles to protect personally identifiable information (PII).  HUD maintained a significant number of records that contain PII with limited zero trust controls in place to secure these data.  In FY 2022, HUD established a zero trust implementation plan to help the agency address the five zero trust…

To promote equal opportunity and identify and eliminate discriminatory practices, Federal regulation mandates that agencies review and respond to all employment-related discrimination complaints.  At the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Office of Departmental Equal Employment Opportunity (ODEEO) is responsible for the enforcement of Federal laws related to eliminating all forms of discrimination in HUD’…