We completed a review of Clark County’s (grantee) Neighborhood Stabilization Program (Program). The grantee includes Clark County and the City of North Las Vegas. We performed the review because Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (Act) reviews are part of the OIG’s audit plan, and the Program was identified as high risk. In addition, the grantee was awarded more than $29.6 million in Program funding. Our objectives were to determine…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Office of Inspector General conducted a capacity review of the Ft. Belknap Indian Community (Ft. Belknap) to determine whether there was evidence that Ft. Belknap lacked the capacity to adequately administer its Recovery Act funding in accordance with requirements. Our review of the Authority was limited to gaining an understanding of internal controls over the administration of…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Inspector General audited the Fort Belknap Indian Community (Fort Belknap) because HUD’s Northern Plains Office of Native American Programs received information indicating financial irregularities in the administration of Indian Housing Block Grant (block grant) funds. The objective of the audit was to determine whether Fort Belknap administered its Federal funds in a manner…

We performed a limited review of the Washoe County HOME Consortium (Consortium) because it received an allocation of more than $4.6 million in Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) funding as a subgrantee of the State of Nevada. Our objective was to determine whether the Consortium had sufficient capacity and had established adequate methodologies to implement the NSP requirements in accordance with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban…

We completed a review of First Source Financial USA (First Source), a former nonsupervised loan correspondent approved to originate FHA-insured loans. The objective was to determine whether First Source originated FHA loans and had a quality control plan that complied with HUD rules and regulations. We reviewed 20 loans amounting to more than $2.5 million that were in claim status. Our review disclosed that First Source: (1) allowed…

We audited Salish and Kootenai Housing Authority (Authority) as part of our review of the Office of Native American Programs' guidance on calculating program income for the United States Housing Act of 1937 (1937 Act) housing projects assisted by the Native American Housing Assistance and Self Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA). The objective of the audit was to determine whether the Authority calculated program income for NAHASDA-assisted…

HELENA – A Helena real estate agent and property manager who admitted to failing to provide lead-based paint disclosures as required to veterans residing in housing at Fort Harrison, in Helena, which resulted in the exposure of veterans and their families to significant levels of lead, was sentenced yesterday to three years of felony probation and fined $150,000, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.Melanie Ann Carlin, 54, of Clancy, pleaded guilty in…

MISSOULA — The former executive director of the Whitefish Housing Authority was sentenced today to four months in prison and four months of home confinement, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $144,842 for embezzling from the organization, which receives federal funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.The defendant, Dwarne Lamont Hawkins, 46, of…

HELENA – A Helena real estate agent and property manager today admitted to failing to provide lead-based paint disclosures as required to veterans residing in housing at Fort Harrison, in Helena, which resulted in the exposure of veterans and their families to significant levels of lead, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.The defendant, Melanie Ann Carlin, 54, of Clancy, appeared for arraignment on and pleaded guilty to an information charging her…

HELENA — Mold Wranglers, Inc., a Kalispell-based company that provides hazardous material mitigation services, today admitted to filing false requests for payment to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs claiming an abatement of lead paint was done at Freedom’s Path Fort Harrison when it was not, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.The defendant, Mold Wranglers, Inc., appeared for arraignment on and pleaded guilty to an information charging one…

MISSOULA — The former executive director of the Whitefish Housing Authority today admitted to embezzling at least $100,000 from the organization, which receives federal funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.The defendant, Dwarne Lamont Hawkins, 46, pleaded guilty to theft from organization receiving federal funding. Hawkins faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and…

LAS VEGAS – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Inspector General hosted a roundtable yesterday for community members and organizations on Sexual Harassment in Housing.“Tenants should feel safe and not live in fear of sexual harassment, sexual assault or sexual exploitation by their landlord or other people who…

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A former regional director of community development for the National Community Stabilization Trust — formed in 2008 in response to the national mortgage-housing foreclosure crisis — was sentenced Tuesday to one year and one day in prison for conspiracy to commit bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds. “The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) entrusts non-profit organizations to administer HUD…