Develop a strategy to comprehensively assess and respond to fraud risks across NYCHA. The strategy should identify who within NYCHA is responsible for designing and overseeing activities to prevent and detect fraud. The strategy should also include how NYCHA will (1) assess fraud risks across NYCHA methodically and periodically, (2) create response plans for fraud risks that are identified, and (3) monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of fraud risk management activities. The strategy should also designate fraud risk responsibilities across NYCHA.

Based on the strategy, (1) complete an assessment of fraud risks across NYCHA, (2) create response plans for fraud risks that are identified, and (3) develop procedures to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of fraud risk management activities.

Assess whether HUD’s other extra-large PHAs have mature fraud risk management programs and use the assessment to develop a strategy to reduce the fraud risk exposure to HUD. The strategy should include working with extra-large PHAs to implement appropriate fraud mitigation activities.

Work with HUD’s Chief Risk Officer to issue a notice to all PHAs explaining that PHAs are responsible for fraud risk management and play a role in fulfilling HUD’s requirement to identify and mitigate fraud risks. This notice should clearly indicate that PHAs should implement fraud risk management, which includes (1) completing an assessment of fraud risks, (2) creating response plans for fraud risks that are identified, and (3) developing procedures to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of fraud risk management activities.

Provide evidence to support that the Authority corrected the 11 unit deficiencies for the 5 units and 7 building deficiencies for 4 buildings with outstanding deficiencies.

Determine the frequency of its quality control reviews of its inspections and work orders and update its quality control policy, training materials, and other resources as appropriate to ensure that its quality control process is consistently implemented.

Support that it has implemented its quality control policy for (1) monitoring the effectiveness of its unit and building inspections to ensure compliance with HUD’s and its own requirements and (2) reviewing work orders to ensure that cited deficiencies are corrected in accordance with HUD’s and its own requirements.

Provide evidence to support that the Authority corrected the four non-life-threatening deficiencies for the three units with outstanding deficiencies.

Implement adequate procedures and controls to ensure that the deficiencies identified during annual self-inspections are properly categorized and corrected in a timely manner.

Develop and implement a plan to manage and reduce its backlog of work orders. This plan should include but not be limited to (1) assessing and addressing staffing needs; (2) creating a timeline for completion of the work orders to ensure that its properties are maintained in decent, safe, and sanitary condition and in good repair; and (3) providing documentation showing that it is on track to meet the completion timeframe.

Implement adequate procedures and controls to ensure that inspection reports are uploaded to the Authority’s electronic filing system and work orders are created in a timely manner. This process should include but not be limited to providing training to its staff on the Authority’s systems, establishing timeframes for the creation of work orders, and monitoring the work order process.

Provide evidence to support that the Authority corrected the 3 non-life-threatening health and safety, and 19 non-health and safety deficiencies.

Develop and implement adequate procedures and controls to ensure that (1) the deficiencies identified during REAC inspections are corrected in a timely manner and (2) documentation is maintained to support that repairs were made.

Implement adequate controls to ensure that the Authority’s information system properly tracks the completion of work orders.

Implement adequate controls to ensure that the correction of life-threatening deficiencies is reported to HUD accurately and in a timely manner.

Provide evidence to support that the owners corrected the 46 deficiencies for the 20 units with outstanding deficiencies. If the owners fail to provide evidence that they made the required corrections, HUD should require the Authority to implement its HAP enforcement procedures and provide supporting documentation to HUD evidencing that it did so.

Improve its quality control process for monitoring its inspectors to enhance the effectiveness of its unit inspections and ensure that all units meet HUD’s and its own requirements to prevent more than $34 million in Program funds from being spent on units that do not meet HQS over the next year. This process should include but not be limited to procedures (1) requiring its staff to use the quality control inspection results to evaluate and monitor the performance of the Authority’s inspectors, along with maintaining adequate supporting documentation on feedback provided to the inspectors for recurring inspection deficiencies and (2) for evaluating the training provided to its inspectors to determine what improvements are needed to ensure that unit deficiencies are detected.

Pursue collection from the applicable owners or reimburse its HCV Program from non-Federal funds $106,477 ($180,309 - $73,832) in inappropriate HAP

Provide evidence to HUD that it has improved its controls and procedures for its stop payment process to ensure that (1) payments to owners comply with its HCV Program administrative plan and HUD requirements and (2) it maintains documentation to support stop payments and resumption of those payments for each unit as applicable.

Provide documentation to support that HAP was appropriately paid to the owners for the 66 units that had more than one stop payment. If additional HAP was inappropriately paid, the Authority should pursue collection from the applicable owners or reimburse its HCV Program from non-Federal funds.