U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government Here’s how you know

The .gov means it’s official.

Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

The site is secure.

The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Hotline

Report Fraud, Waste and Abuse
September 27, 2018
  • Public and Indian Housing
2018-KC-1004
2018-KC-1004.pdf

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Inspector General audited the Benkelman Housing Authority based on a request from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General (HUD OIG), Office of Investigation.  Additionally, HUD conducted an onsite assessment in May 2016 and identified concerns, including procurement, income verification, travel policy, and significant control deficiencies.  Our audit objective was to determine whether the Authority followed HUD’s rules and regulations for public housing programs related to procurement and maintenance, tenant certifications, laundry machine income, and expenditures.

The Authority did not always comply with procurement and maintenance policies, improperly completed initial tenant certifications and annual recertifications, improperly certified tenants with potential conflict-of-interest relationships, and mismanaged its laundry machine revenue.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Omaha, NE, Office of Public Housing require the Authority to provide adequate documentation to support that the $71,034 spent for improperly procured goods and services was spent at the most competitive prices and provide adequate documentation to support more than $15,000 spent for maintenance activities.  Additionally, we recommend that HUD (1) work with the Authority to develop a formalized process, such as a checklist, when conducting initial certifications and annual recertifications, which would help to ensure that it follows HUD requirements for its public housing program; (2) require the Authority to conduct a 100 percent review of its tenant files to ensure that tenants’ rents are accurate and the proper income, asset, and medical expenses are complete and documented in the tenant files; and (3) require the Authority to address actual or potential conflict-of-interest relationships in its Admissions and Continued Occupancy Policy.  We also recommend that HUD require the Authority to develop and implement detailed policies and procedures to address collections, tracking, and use of its laundry machine revenue.

Recommendations
Recommendation Status Date Issued Summary
2018-KC-1004-001-A Closed September 27, 2018 Provide adequate documentation to support that the $71,034 spent for improperly procured goods and services was spent at the most competitive prices. For any amounts not supported, it should reimburse its program from non-Federal funds.
2018-KC-1004-001-B Closed September 27, 2018 Provide adequate documentation to support $15,280 spent for maintenance activities. For any amounts not supported, it should reimburse its program from non-Federal funds.
2018-KC-1004-001-C Closed September 27, 2018 Develop and implement detailed operating procedures, including checklists, which fully implement its procurement policy and HUD requirements.
2018-KC-1004-001-D Closed September 27, 2018 Ensure that its executive director obtains appropriate procurement training.
2018-KC-1004-002-A Closed September 27, 2018 Work with the Authority to develop a formalized process, such as a checklist, to use when conducting initial certifications and annual recertifications, which would help to ensure that it follows HUD requirements for its public housing program.
2018-KC-1004-002-B Closed September 27, 2018 Require the Authority’s executive director to obtain appropriate training regarding public housing occupancy requirements.
2018-KC-1004-002-C Closed September 27, 2018 Require the Authority to conduct a 100 percent review of its tenant files to ensure that tenants’ rents are accurate and the proper income, asset, and medical expenses are complete and documented in the tenant files.
2018-KC-1004-002-D Closed September 27, 2018 Monitor the Authority after the recommended training and tenant file reviews are complete to ensure that the executive director understands and properly implements public housing occupancy requirements.
2018-KC-1004-003-A Closed September 27, 2018 Require the Authority to address actual or potential conflict-of-interest relationships in its Admissions and Continued Occupancy Policy.
2018-KC-1004-003-B Closed September 27, 2018 Work with the Authority to develop a plan to ensure that a third party reviews the initial tenant certifications and annual recertifications with an actual or potential conflict of interest.
2018-KC-1004-003-C Closed September 27, 2018 Ensure that the Authority’s board of commissioners and staff receive HUD-approved training on conflicts of interest.
2018-KC-1004-003-D Closed September 27, 2018 Monitor the Authority to ensure that initial tenant certifications and annual recertifications with an actual or potential conflict of interest are appropriately handled.
2018-KC-1004-004-A Closed September 27, 2018 Require the Authority to develop and implement detailed policies and procedures to address collections, tracking, and use of its laundry machine revenue.
2018-KC-1004-004-B Closed September 27, 2018 Require the Authority to determine how much laundry machine revenue was not deposited into its accounts and used for eligible purposes and reimburse its program from non-Federal funds.
2018-KC-1004-004-C Closed September 27, 2018 Monitor the Authority to ensure compliance with its new laundry machine revenue policies.