Congress appropriated $35.8 billion for HUD in 2017 and 2018 for recovery from Hurricanes Harvey in Texas; Irma in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and the U.S. Virgin Islands; Maria in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands; and Nate in Mississippi. These disasters resulted in the significant loss of human life and massive property destruction. As reported in our Top Management Challenges, HUD faces challenges in ensuring that grantees have the capacity to administer the funds, and they use disaster funds for eligible and supported items.

OIG oversight starts with an audit to assess the recipient’s capacity to administer the funds in accordance with program and Federal requirements. After funds are spent we will conduct additional audits to determine if the expenditures met applicable requirements. We conduct performance reviews to assess if there are more efficient and economical ways to operate the program. We also investigate frauds including falsified eligibility, duplicate payments, public corruption, and contracting and contract execution irregularities. Given the magnitude of the damage caused by these disasters and the extensive reconstruction and recovery efforts needed, OIG’s oversight will continue and significantly increase over the next several years.